Google’s new parent company Alphabet reported fourth quarter earnings after the close of the market on Monday. The company exceeded investors’ expectations, reporting sales of $21.3 billion and net income of $4.9 billion (or $7.16 a share). The stock rose more than 4 percent in early Tuesday trading on the news, which brings shares close to an all-time high. Other revenues — the line item that includes the Play store — had sales of $2.1 billion in the fourth quarter, up 24 percent compared to $1.688 billion a year ago. For the full year, that sector had sales of $7.151 billion, compared to $6.05 […]
Earnings Reports
Amazon Grows, But Profits Aren’t Enough for Traders
Amazon reported fourth quarter sales after the close of the market on Thursday, with revenues growing 22 percent to $35.7 billion, and net income of $482 million in the fourth quarter, or $1.00 per diluted share. While those sound like strong results (record results, even), analysts were expecting slightly higher sales ($35.98 billion) and much stronger earnings of $1.58 per share, so the stock is down — falling about 9 percent first thing Friday after having risen on Thursday ahead of the earnings announcement. The AWS unit generated $687 million in operating income (while the entire company had $1.1 billion of operating income in […]
Apple Gains, Modestly, As “Services” Are Explained More
In closely-watched first quarter 2016 results that had many expecting Apple to stumble, the company reported sales and earnings slightly ahead of the same period a year ago, barely setting new records. Sales for the quarter ending December 26 were $75.9 billion (up $1.3 billion) and net income was $18.4 billion (up $400 million), or $3.28 per diluted share. But projections for the second quarter do forecast a decline in sales; the company expects revenues of between $50 billion and $53 billion, compared to $58 billion in second quarter 2015 (and below analysts’ previous forecasts of $55 billion). As a […]
Pearson to Cut 4,000 Jobs, Reduces Forecasts
After first surprising markets by reducing their sales and profit expectations last October, on Thursday morning Pearson ceo John Fallon admitted “that the cyclical and policy related challenges in our biggest markets have been more pronounced and persisted for longer than anticipated.” Another round of restructuring and reorganization is expected to eliminate 4,000 jobs — or 10 percent of the company’s workforce — and cost “approximately £320 million” in one-time charges this year. While you might expect that such dramatic moves would further sink the stock — which as we noted before fell 42 percent in 2015 and dropped again in early January […]
Scholastic Reduces Guidance After Down Quarter; Will Buy Back $200 Million In Shares
Scholastic reported fiscal second quarter results on Thursday, with sales falling $9.3 million to $601.8 million, and earnings from continuing operations declining to $1.85 a share, compared to $2.02 a year ago. Operating profit of $105.1 million was down 5 percent versus last year. The strong US dollar cost the company $17.2 million in negative foreign exchange impact, and based on those currency “headwinds” as well as a “now settled labor action in Ontario schools that resulted in a substantial drop in reading club and book fair revenues” during the back-to-school period, Scholastic reduced its full-year guidance. Fiscal 2016 sales are now projected to be […]
Wiley Revenue Decline Continues in Q2
Wiley reported second quarter sales for the period ending October 31, with sales falling 5 percent to $433 million (down $44 million) on currency exchange. Adjusted operating income of $64 million was down 13 percent for the quarter, and net income was down $8 million (or 11 percent) to $45.9 million. In the professional development division, which includes their remaining trade books, revenue dropped 3 percent overall to $99.2 million. Book sales were down 6 percent, however, with print book sales of $49.2 million declining 4 percent, and digital book sales of $11.9 million were down 14 percent. For the rest of fiscal […]