Proofpoint Q4 Results Beat View; Sees Q1, 2014 Revenue Above Estimates

(RTTNews) - Shares of Proofpoint, Inc. (PFPT) gained more than 16 percent in extended trades Thursday after the company's adjusted loss per share for the fourth quarter came in narrower than analysts' expectations and revenue beat their estimates. However, the company reported a loss for the fourth quarter that widened from last year as higher expenses more than offset strong revenue growth.

Looking ahead, the Sunnyvale, California-based company forecast loss per share for the first quarter as well as fiscal 2014 to be wider than Street expectations, but projects revenues to be above their estimates.

Proofpoint is a provider of threat protection, regulatory compliance, archiving and governance, as well as secure communication solutions.

Gary Steele, chief executive officer of Proofpoint said, "Our record revenue, billings and free cash flow during the fourth quarter resulted from strong execution, as well as the ongoing robust demand for our integrated, cloud-based platform. The investments in our sales and product development, along with the addition of key acquisitions, have resulted in increased global leadership as we continued to penetrate some of the largest enterprises in the world."

The company's net loss for the fourth quarter widened to $12.57 million or $0.35 per share from $5.50 million or $0.17 per share in the same period last year.

Adjusted loss for the quarter was $2.54 million or $0.07 per share, compared to adjusted loss of $3.15 million or $0.10 per share in the year-ago period. On average, 13 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report loss of $0.12 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Total revenues for the quarter grew 43 percent to $40.84 million from $28.65 million in the same period last year. Analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $35.72 million.

Of the total revenues, subscription revenue rose 43 percent to $39.33 million, while hardware and services revenue contributed the remaining $1.51 million of total revenue.

Billings, or revenue recognized during the quarter plus the net change in deferred revenue from the beginning to the end of the period, surged 33 percent to $48.94 million.

Proofpoint noted that during the quarter, billings excluded a one-time $14.5 million deferred revenue contribution from the Sendmail acquisition, the majority of which will be recognized as revenue over the next two years. This contribution was not anticipated at the time of acquisition.

For fiscal 2013, Proofpoint's net loss was $28.22 million or $0.81 per share, compared to loss of $20.36 million or $0.85 per share in the previous year. Adjusted net loss was $11.28 million or $0.32 per share, compared to loss of $9.76 million or $0.31 per share in the prior year.

Revenue for the year grew 30 percent to $137.93 million from $106.30 million last year.

Street expected the company to report loss of $0.37 per share for the year on revenues of $132.78 million.

Looking ahead to the first quarter, Proofpoint forecast adjusted loss in a range of $0.21 to $0.18 per share, with revenues between $40.0 million and $41.0 million. Analysts currently expect the company to report loss of $0.12 per share for the quarter on revenues of $36.72 million.

For the fiscal year 2014, the company currently expects adjusted loss in a range of $0.53 to $0.48 per share, with revenues in a range of $174.5 million to $176.5 million. Street currently expect the company to report loss of $0.29 per share for the year on revenues of $165.50 million.

PFPT closed Thursday's trading at $36.53, up $1.62 or 4.64 percent on a volume of 759,935 shares. In after-hours, the stock further gained $5.97 or 16.34 percent to $42.50.