Symmetricom Shares Tumble After 4Q Miss

NEW YORK (AP) ¿ Symmetricom Inc. shares tumbled Wednesday, hurt by fiscal fourth-quarter results and a forecast that fell below Wall Street expectations.

The San Jose, Calif. company's stock fell 88 cents, or 14 percent, to $5.19 in midday trading.

Symmetricom, which makes synchronization hardware and software services, said Tuesday it reversed its year-earlier loss, posting earnings of $1.9 million, or 4 cents per share. Adjusted profit totaled 8 cents per share, a penny short of analysts estimates, according to Thomson Reuters.

Sales topped projections, growing 6 percent to $60.4 million, compared with the average forecast of $55.3 million.

But Morgan Keegan analyst Simon Leopold, who kept a "Market Perform" rating on shares, attributed better-than-expected sales to "typical lumpiness," an uneven distribution of revenue over the full year.

He added in a note to clients Tuesday that "despite the upside to sales, expenses jumped to cover bonuses that the staff earned for the better revenue."

Symmetricom also said fiscal first-quarter results will likely disappoint Wall Street.

It expects revenue of $48 million and $55 million and adjusted earnings of a penny to 6 cents per share.

The average forecast called for earnings of 9 cents per share, while analysts expected revenue of $54 million.

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