Compuware Meets Diminished Expectations
DETROIT -- Compuware Corp. (Nasdaq: CPWR) Thursday announced net income of $21.6 million or 10 cents a share in its third fiscal quarter ended Dec. 31, down from $34 million or 15 cents a quarter a year earlier.
Revenue was up from a year earlier at $253.1 million from $247 million a year earlier -- but the cost of software license fees, maintenance fees, subscription fees and professional services rose faster, leading to the profitability decline.
Spending on technology development and support, at $27.3 million, was also up sharply from $22.5 million a year earlier. So was spending on sales and marketing, at $69.7 million, up from $62.4 million a year earlier. As a result, operating income fell to $32.6 million from $49.5 million a year earlier.
During the quarter, software license fees were $57.1 million, down from $60.2 million a year earlier; maintenance fees were $106.8 million, up from $106.3 million a year earlier; subscription fees were $19.9 million, up from $17.8 million a year earlier; and professional services fees were $50.8 million, up from $48.3 million a year earlier.
For the nine months, revenue hit $743.7 million, up from $679.4 million a year ago. Nine-month net income was $61.3 million or 28 cents a share, down from $72.6 million or 32 cents a share a year earlier. "The growth Compuware delivered across its business in Q3 confirms that we have built the right portfolio for consistently increasing revenue and earnings going forward," said Compuware CEO Bob Paul in a statement. "Compuware remains poised to deliver its largest year-over-year increase in full-year revenues in a dozen years, and we will use those results as a catapult into a profitable year of growth in FY '13. To immediately optimize our ability to do so, we have sharply focused our team on enhancing sales execution and better expense management throughout the organization."
