Marvell Technology Profit Drops, Details Weak Q1 Outlook

(RTTNews) - Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (MRVL) on Thursday said its fourth-quarter profit dropped from a year ago, hurt largely by an eight percent drop in revenues. Earnings for the quarter trumped Wall Street estimates by a penny, but revenues fell short of expectations.

Looking ahead, the chip maker detailed a weak outlook for the first quarter.

Santa Clara, California-based Marvell's fourth-quarter profit dropped to $81.7 million or $0.16 per share from $97.1 million or $0.19 per share last year.

Excluding special items, earnings for the quarter slipped to $0.25 per share from $0.29 per share a year ago. On average, 26 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimated earnings of $0.24 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Marvell's revenues for the fourth quarter declined about 8 percent to $857.5 million from $931.7 million in the prior year period. Twenty-six analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $890 million for the quarter.

Gross margins for the quarter rose to 51.4 percent from 48.8 percent a year ago, while operating costs declined to $360.5 million from $363.9 million last year.

Looking forward to the first quarter, the company expects adjusted earnings of $0.18 per share, plus or minus one cent, and revenues of $810 million to $830 million. Analysts currently expect earnings of $0.22 per share on revenues of $884.2 million for the quarter.

MRVL closed Thursday's trading at $16.40, up $0.17 or 1.05%, on the Nasdaq. The stock further dropped $0.37 or 2.26% in the after-hours trade.