CKFR ($29-$24) EPS -$4.50 net loss widens, subscriber numbers up
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siliconinvestor.com
NORCROSS, Ga., Aug 14 (Reuters) - Internet billing firm CheckFree Corp. (NasdaqNM:CKFR - news) on Tuesday said its fiscal fourth-quarter net loss widened, as large amortization charges offset the benefits of rising subscriber numbers.
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The Norcross, Georgia-based company posted a net loss, including acquisition-related amortization and one-time charges, of $87.7 million, or $1.01 per share, in the quarter ended June 30. That compares with a loss of $20.5 million, or 36 cents per share, in the year-ago period.
Excluding amortization and one-time charges, the firm reported a loss of $779,000, or 1 cent per share, compared with a loss of $3.3 million, or 6 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.
That met the high end of analysts' forecasts of a loss between 4 cents and 1 cent a share, with a mean of a loss of 2 cents, according to research firm Thomson Financial/First Call.
Revenues rose 38 percent, to $121.8 million, while the number of CheckFree subscribers -- an indicator analysts use to gauge the company's progress -- rose to 5.2 million at the end of the quarter, compared with 3.5 million a year ago.
CheckFree added that it expected to report a 1- to 3-cent loss per share for the first quarter of its new fiscal year, excluding amortization and one-time charges. That is in line with the 2-cent per share loss expected by analysts polled by First Call.
It added that it expected revenues for the first quarter to drop slightly to $116 million to $121 million, reflecting a seasonal drop in software license sales.
CheckFree said it expected to report positive earnings per share in the mid- to high-single-digit range for full-year 2002, excluding amortizations and one-time items.
CheckFree shares dropped 2 percent in after-hours trading to $29 late on Tuesday, after closing at $29.67 at the end of regular trading. |
