Citrix's Net Falls

SAN FRANCISCO - In spite of solid revenue growth, Citrix Systems'(CTXS) first-quarter bottom line fell and its guidance was below Wall Street expectations.

The Fort Lauderdale, Fla. infrastructure technology company reported top-line growth of 22% to $377 million compared to $308.1 million in the same quarter of last year. Analysts were expecting revenue of $371.6 million, according to Thomson Financial.

Net income dropped 8.5% to $34.4 million, from $37.6 million in the year ago-period. EPS was 18 cents, vs. 20 cents a year ago. Research and development expenses rose 54% year over year, while sales and marketing expense grew 27%.

Excluding items, EPS was 35 cents, a penny ahead of analysts' expectations.

The stock was down $1.39, or 4.3%, to $31 in after-hours trading.

For the second quarter, the company projected revenue of $380 million to $390 million and EPS of 35 cents to 38 cents. Analysts were looking for revenue of $392.8 million and EPS of 38 cents.

For the full year, Citrix said revenue would range from $1.6 billion to $1.645 billion and EPS of $1.54 to $1.64. Analysts were expecting a top line of $1.63 billion and EPS of $1.63.

Deferred revenue grew 22% year over year to $459 million, while product license revenue increased 20%, the company said.

With Citrix's acquisition of XenSource in 2007, it became a direct competitor to virtualization leader VMware(VMW), which reported revenue growth of nearly 70% Tuesday.

Microsoft(MSFT), which released a beta version of its virtualization software in its new Windows Server 2008 software, reports earnings Thursday.

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