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03 Aug 17. Symantec Corp raised its full-year adjusted revenue forecast above analysts’ estimates as the cyber security provider benefits from strong demand in its enterprise division.
Shares of the Norton antivirus maker were up 2.5 percent at $32 in after-hours trading on Wednesday. Revenue in Symantec’s enterprise security division, its biggest by sales, jumped 34 percent to $646m in the first quarter.
The company is getting a lift from a spate of cyber attacks since the “WannaCry” incident in May that infected more than 300,000 computers across the globe.
Symantec has also been making strategic purchases to strengthen offerings across its enterprise and consumer divisions.
The company bought cloud security provider Blue Coat and identity theft protection firm LifeLock in 2016, and recently acquired Israeli firm Fireglass.
Separately, the company announced that it has agreed to sell its website certification business to DigiCert Inc for about $950m. Reuters reported that Symantec is considering selling this business.
Excluding items, Symantec reported a profit of 33 cents per share and revenue of $1.23bn in the first quarter ended June 30.
Analysts on average had expected a profit of 31 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Symantec raised its full-year adjusted revenue forecast to range between $5.16 billion and $5.26bn, from earlier expectations of $5.10bn to $5.20 billion.
Excluding items, the company said it expects to report earnings of between $1.79 per share and $1.89 per share, up from its earlier expectation of $1.75 per share to $1.85 per share.
Analysts on average were expecting revenue of $5.15bn and profit of $1.79 per share. Up to Wednesday’s close, Symantec’s shares had risen nearly 31 percent this year. (Source: Reuters)
02 Aug 17. Government contracts help drive revenues at Inmarsat. UK satellite operator Inmarsat reported a leap in first half revenues on the back of its business with global governments, but warned of uncertainty in the years to come. The FTSE 250 group said overall revenues were up 7.7 per cent to $356m in the second quarter and up 9.4 per cent in the first half, driven by a 41 per cent increase in its government contracts in the three months to June. Government-related revenues climbed to $101.1m in the second quarter from $72m in the same period last year. Rupert Pearce, chief executive, said Inmarsat had managed to outperform in the government sector despite “tough market conditions”. The group enjoyed a 78 per cent jump in second quarter revenues from its US government business, where Inmarsat has tied up with Boeing to deliver high-speed broadband to the American military. Inmarsat said it had also signed a “new, confidential and high margin contract” with the US government in the second quarter. Revenues at the group’s aviation division climbed by 37 per in the second quarter but slipped 5 per cent in the maritime unit after a “tough” comparison period last year. Inmarsat retained its full-year guidance. (Source: FT.com)
02 Aug 17. Rheinmetall continues on growth path – Forecast slightly increased.
– Consolidated sales grow by 8.0% to €2,808m in the first half of the year
– Operating earnings for the Group improve by 30% to €134 m
– Automotive increases sales to €1,465m and operating margin to 8.8%
– Sales growth of 7.4% to €1,343 m and improvement in earnings of €12m to €14m in Defence
– Order backlog for the Group of €7.1bn
The Rheinmetall Group, based in Düsseldorf, closed the first half of the year with considerable sales growth and a strong increase in operating earnings. This upward trend was driven by both of the technology group’s sectors.
Based on the good business performance in