SeaChange Shares Plunge As 2Q Misses Expectations

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Shares of SeaChange International Inc. plunged on Wednesday after the video-on-demand provider posted second-quarter results well below expectations.

The company said broadcast customers cut back on spending due to a sluggish advertising market.

SeaChange on Tuesday recorded a loss of about $400,000, or a penny per share, compared with a year-ago profit of $1.5 million, or 5 cents per share. The latest quarter includes charges of 2 cents per share related to the company's acquisition of Dutch firm eventIS Group B.V.

Revenue slipped to $46.5 million from $50.7 million.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected profit of 6 cents per share on revenue of $49.5 million.

SeaChange said the eventIS acquisition will result in a 10 percent increase in revenue for the second half of the year compared with the first half. It also expects to be profitable in the second half.

Shares of Acton, Mass.-based SeaChange fell $1.57, or 17.7 percent, to $7.33 in midday trading Wednesday. The stock has ranged from $4.20 to $9.98 over the past year.