Open Text Reports Decline In 4Q Profit

NEW YORK (AP) — Business software provider Open Text Corp. said Thursday its fiscal fourth-quarter profit fell 40 percent as higher costs and expenses offset a small gain in revenue, but adjusted results beat Wall Street expectations.

For the three months ended June 30, net income fell to $19.5 million, or 36 cents per share, compared with $27.3 million, or 51 cents per share, in the year-earlier period. However, excluding one-time items, the Waterloo, Ontario-based company earned 73 cents per share, up 18 percent year-over-year.

Revenue rose to $203.4 million from $200.3 million.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected, on average, earnings per share of 66 cents on slightly higher sales of $213.4 million. Such estimates typically exclude one-time items.

Total cost of revenue for the quarter edged up to $64.9 million from $62.9 million.

CEO John Shackleton said he is pleased with his company's integration of Vignette Corp., which makes software for managing content online and in corporate networks. Open Text bought Vignette in July for $323 million.

For the 2009 fiscal year, Open Text earned $56.9 million, or $1.07 per share, compared with $53 million, or $1.01 per share, in the previous year.

Shares fell 67 cents to close earlier at $37.63.