Computer Associates International released its delayed
fourth-quarter financial report yesterday, meeting the earnings and
revenue forecasts it provided earlier this month.
Revenue for the quarter was $850m, up 10% from $775m for the
same quarter the previous year. Net income for the quarter was
$89m. In last year's fourth quarter, CA lost $106m.
Calculations excluded expenses related to acquisitions and CA's
settlement of shareholder litigation. Also excluded is a $10m
charge for an offer CA made the government as part of settlement
discussions about ending government probes of its past accounting
violations.
CA expected to be fined for the accounting violations, and that
$10m represents its initial settlement offer, although no comment
was given on the US government's response.
Interim chief executive officer Kenneth Cron praised CA's
performance as strong in a quarter filled with "a number of
distractions".
CA also released its results from its 2004 financial year, which
ended 31 March. Revenue for the year was $3.3bn, up 8% from last
year's $3bn. CA's net income for the year was $25m, up from a $267m
loss in 2003.
CA once again tweaked its accounting methods, making direct
comparisons with earlier quarters difficult, but financial analyst
Drew Brousseau, with SG Cowen, said the company is making good
progress on increasing the transparency of its financial
reports.
"It's okay because [the changes] are more conservative. I
wouldn’t want to see them going the other way," he said.
Brousseau added that he was pleased with CA's fourth-quarter
results, and with its growth plans.
"I think this [CA World} conference has been pretty constructive
in terms of the direction the company is heading in," he said.
"They're continuing to push the breadth and depth of their
portfolio."
Stacy Cowley writes for IDG News
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