WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Optical transmission equipment maker Infinera Corp. (INFN) reported Tuesday a loss for the third quarter compared to a profit last year, reflecting significantly lower margins and a drop in quarterly revenues. Adjusted loss per share for the quarter came in narrower than analysts' expectations, and quarterly revenues also topped their estimates, despite the decline.
'We remain encouraged by our recent revenue performance and the momentum in booking activity as customers continue to address their increased bandwidth needs with Infinera-based networks,' President and CEO Tom Fallon said in a statement.
The Sunnyvale, California-based company reported a net loss of $21.81 million or $0.21 per share for the third quarter, compared to net income of $4.36 million or $0.04 per share in the prior-year quarter.
Excluding items, adjusted net loss for the quarter was $9.23 million or $0.09 per share, compared to net income of $18.74 million or $0.18 per share in the year-ago quarter.
On average, 11 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report a loss of $0.11 per share for the third quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.
Revenues for the quarter declined to $104.02 million from $130.06 million in the same quarter last year, but topped nine Wall Street analysts' consensus estimate of $99.91 million.
'Several factors are contributing to these trends -- our significant installed base, the broader application of our product line, our expanded sales force and a stronger focus at Infinera on key vertical markets and across geographies,' Fallon added.
Gross margin for the third quarter contracted 11 percentage points to 39 percent from last year's 50 percent.
Looking ahead, Fallon noted that 'the company's top customer for the third quarter was one of North America's leading cable companies and that the company's pipeline remains active with opportunities in the submarine space and with wholesale carriers in North America and Europe.'
INFN closed Tuesday's regular trading session at $7.99, up $0.20 or 2.57% on a volume of 2.08 million shares.
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