Ariba Beats Expectations,
Could Break Even by June
A WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE News Roundup
Ariba Inc. beat analysts expectations for the December quarter and said it expects to break even by
June.
The Sunnyvale, Calif., software company posted a net loss of $161.3 million, or 63 cents a share
for the fiscal first quarter ending Dec. 31. Net loss for the same period last year was $347.6 million,
or $1.48 a share.
Ariba's pro forma loss, which excludes expenses related to the amortization of goodwill and other
intangible assets, business partner warrants and stock-based compensation, was $6.9 million, or
three cents a diluted share, compared with a year-ago profit of $14 million, or five cents a share.
The company beat expectations of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial/First Call, who
expected a pro forma loss of five cents a share.
Revenue dropped 68% to $55.3 million from $170.2 million a year
earlier, hitting the upper end of the $50 to $55 million range previously
forecast by the company. Analysts had estimated revenue of $52.7
million.
"In light of the continued soft global economic environment, I am pleased with the solid results for
the quarter," said Ariba's president and chief executive Bob Calderoni in a prepared statement.
Ariba, which specializes in business-to-business software, said it could achieve pro forma
break-even as early as June.
Wall Street currently expects Ariba to lose four cents a share in the second quarter, three cents a
share in the third quarter and one cent a share in the fourth quarter, on a pro forma basis.
When Ariba reported its fiscal fourth-quarter results in late October, it said sales revenue had been
halved as the Sept. 11 attacks stifled the already-reduced market for software. The company
aggressively slashed costs last year, including several rounds of job cuts.
In 4 p.m. Nasdaq Stock Market trading Tuesday, Ariba shares fell 13%, or 87 cents, to $5.93. |
