By Josh Beckerman
Software maker Intuit Inc. said its results for the October
quarter were better than internal projections, reflecting strong
customer growth led by QuickBooks Online.
For the current quarter, Intuit expects a loss excluding items
of 11 cents to 13 cents a share, on revenue of $780 million to $800
million.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters project a loss of 11 cents a
share on revenue of $768 million.
In after-hours trading, shares were up 1.4% to $92.
Intuit, known for TurboTax, Quicken and QuickBooks, has
diversified through a variety of acquisitions. In June, the company
bought mobile payment provider Check for about $360 million.
Previously, it struck deals for document service DocStoc and
tax-return helper GoodApril.
Intuit said in August that a move toward subscriptions and
changes in desktop-product development would result in the company
recognizing desktop revenue over time, instead of the upfront
license revenue it previously recorded. Intuit said this would lead
to a "transition year" for fiscal 2015, with about $400 million of
revenue pushed into deferred revenue, and said it expected
double-digit revenue growth starting in fiscal 2016.
For the first quarter ended Oct. 31, the company posted a loss
of $84 million, or 29 cents a share, compared with a loss of $11
million, or four cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding
stock-based compensation and other items, its loss per share
widened to 10 cents from six cents. Revenue rose 8% to $672
million, while total costs and expenses rose to $786 million from
$699 million.
Intuit had projected a loss excluding items of 20 cents to 21
cents a share on revenue of $620 million to $630 million for the
quarter.
Intuit reaffirmed its fiscal 2015 outlook for earnings excluding
items of $2.45 to $2.50 a share on revenue of $4.275 billion to
$4.375 billion.
Write to Josh Beckerman at josh.beckerman@wsj.com
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