Symantec Q3 Profit Rises On Lower Costs - Update

(RTTNews) - Security software maker Symantec Corp. (SYMC), Wednesday reported a rise in profit for the third quarter, helped mainly by lower costs even as revenues declined 5 percent reflecting continued slump in PC sales. Both earnings and revenues for the quarter came in ahead of Wall Street estimates.

Mountain View, California-based Symantec's third-quarter profit rose to $283 million or $0.40 per share from $216 million or $0.31 per share in the same quarter last year.

Adjusted earnings improved to $0.51 per share from $0.45 per share last year. On average, twenty-eight analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of $0.43 per share for the third quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Revenue for the third quarter fell 5% to $1.71 billion from $1.79 billion a year ago. Twenty-four analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $1.66 billion for the third quarter.

Symantec, which makes Norton anti-virus, has laid off workers and consolidated its business in order to soften the impact of dropping sales of PC that has impacted its anti-virus software shipments.

Total operating costs for the quarter dropped 14 percent to $1.02 billion.

Looking forward to the fourth quarter, the company expects earnings of $0.29 to $0.31 per share and adjusted earnings of $0.40 to $0.42 per share, with revenues of $1.615 billion to $1.655 billion.

Analysts currently expect earnings of $0.41 per share on revenue of $1.65 billion for the fourth quarter.

For fiscal year 2014, the company now expect earnings in the range of $1.25 and $1.27 per share, adjusted earnings of $1.85 to $1.87 per share, and revenue of $6.67 billion to $6.71 billion. Analysts currently expect earnings of $1.77 per share on revenue of $6.66 billion for 2014.

Previously, the company expected fiscal year 2014 revenues to decline 3 to 4 percent in constant currency and adjusted earnings to be between -1.0 and 1.5 percent compared to the prior fiscal year.

SYMC closed Wednesday's trading at $24.15, up $0.85 or 3.65%, on the Nasdaq. The stock, however, dropped $0.75 or 3.11%, in after-hours trade.