Mentor Shares Surge As 3Q Outlook Tops Street

NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of Mentor Graphics Corp. surged Friday after the software maker's third-quarter financial projections topped analyst expectations.

"They entered this year with some degree of caution about customers' ability to renew contracts," said D.A. Davidson & Co. analyst Matt Petkun. "Now it looks like those customers are going ahead and placing new orders."

Mentor, a Wilsonville, Ore.-based company that makes electronics-testing software, said late Thursday it expects adjusted earnings of a penny per share on sales of $183 million for the third quarter.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters predicted a loss of 2 cents per share and sales of $179.6 million.

Shares jumped $1.11, or 14 percent, to $9.03 in afternoon trading Friday. The stock has traded between $3.34 and $13 over the past year.