Blue Coat Misses On 4Q Earnings; Shares Slip

SUNNYVALE, Calif. (AP) — Blue Coat Systems Inc. fell to a loss for its fiscal fourth quarter Tuesday on higher expenses and one-time items, sending shares down in after-hours trading.

The security hardware and software maker said it lost $3.5 million, or 9 cents per share, in the three months ended April 30. That compares with a profit of $12.5 million, or 32 cents per share, in the year-earlier quarter.

Sales climbed 29 percent to $113.6 million from $88.2 million, helped by the company's acquisition of Packeteer Inc. last year. But operating expenses also grew, climbing 35 percent to $80.3 million from $59.5 million.

Excluding items, Blue Coat said its earnings came to $8 million, or 19 cents per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected 21 cents per share on sales of $114.3 million.

Shares tumbled 56 cents, or 3.6 percent, to $15.09 in after-hours trading, after closing up 22 cents at $15.65 during the regular session.

For the full fiscal year, Blue Coat reported a loss of $8.5 million, or 22 cents per share, compared with net income of $32.6 million, or 82 cents per share, a year earlier. Adjusted earnings came to $36 million, or 84 cents per share.

Sales climbed 46 percent to $444.7 million from $305.4 million.

Blue Coat forecast adjusted fiscal first-quarter earnings of 20 cents to 25 cents per share on sales of between $114 million and $119 million. Analysts are looking for 21 cents on $115.6 million.