Symantec Corp., Nasdaq symbol SYMC, sells Internet security technology, including anti-virus and Internet content and email filtering software, to businesses and consumers.
In the three months ended December 31, 2011, Symantec’s revenue rose 3.6%, to $1.6 billion from $1.5 billion a year earlier. The stock market investment gets 52% of its revenue from overseas sales. If you disregard the negative impact of exchange rates, international sales rose 5% during the quarter.
The company earned $272 million, down 16.3% from $325 million a year earlier. Symantec spent $265 million on share buybacks in the latest quarter. Due to fewer shares outstanding, earnings per share fell 12.5%, to $0.35 from $0.40 a year earlier. These figures exclude unusual items, such as costs to absorb recent acquisitions. On this basis, the latest earnings beat the consensus estimate of $0.33.
Publicity around the WikiLeaks affair, involving the public release of often embarrassing diplomatic cables, has made the company’s customers even more security conscious. This should help Symantec sell more anti-virus and other software, despite the sluggishness of the U.S. economic recovery.
The stock market investment devotes around 15% of its revenue to research, so it’s more profitable than it appears. This spending will also help it keep its lead in the competitive and fast-changing computer-security industry.
The company’s long term debt of $2.0 billion is 14% of its $14.1-billion market cap. It holds cash of $2.5 billion, or $3.15 a share.
Symantec plans to buy back $1 billion more of its shares, but hasn’t said how quickly it will do so. The stock trades at 12.5 times the $1.40 a share, excluding one-time items, that Symantec should earn in 2011.
You can get our full analysis, including our clear buy/sell/hold, on Symantec and dozens of other stocks that may be suitable for the part of your portfolio you devote to aggressive investing in Stock Pickers Digest. What’s more, you can get one month free when you subscribe now. Click here to learn how.
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