Cisco Q4 Results Beat Street, But Shares Fall 7% On Weak Outlook

(RTTNews) - Silicon Valley giant Cisco Systems Inc., (CSCO) Wednesday reported a profit and revenues for the fourth quarter that trumped Wall Street analysts estimates. However, shares of the company slipped 7% in extended trading session on a weak outlook for the current quarter.

The San Jose, California-based networking-equipment maker reported fourth-quarter profit of $2.21 billion or $0.51 per share, compared to last year's profit of $3.80 billion or $0.81 per share.

Adjusted earnings for the quarter were $0.83 per share, up from $0.70 per share last year. On average, 25 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimated earnings of $0.82 per share for the quarter.

Revenues for the quarter grew 5 percent to $13.43 from $12.84 billion last year. Analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $13.38 billion for the quarter.

"We are pleased with our solid execution and performance in Q4, delivering revenue growth of 6%, non-GAAP EPS growth of 19%, and strong margins," said CFO Kelly Kramer. "We continue to transform our business model with software subscriptions now at 70% of our software revenue. The returns on our investments in key strategic areas position Cisco for long-term growth and shareholder value."

Looking forward to the first quarter, Cisco expects adjusted earnings of $0.80 to $0.82 per share with revenue growth of 0 to 2 percent. Analysts currently expect earnings of $0.83 per share and revenues of $13.40 billion.

CSCO closed Wednesday's trading at $50.61, down $2.11 or 4.00%, on the Nasdaq. The stock further dropped $3.62 or 7.15% in the after-hours trade.