Cognos Inc. stood its ground in its fiscal fourth quarter ended Feb. 28, with revenue nearly identical to the same quarter a year ago and net income up, boosted by a reversal of earlier restructuring charges.
The Ottawa-based business intelligence software developer yesterday reported revenue of $142.8 million, down slightly from $144.1 million in the same period in 2001. It turned a $26.9 million profit on that revenue, up from $22.1 million in the same period a year ago. The 29 cents per share earnings easily beat consensus Wall Street estimates of 22 cents per share.
Net income was boosted by a $2.6 million reversal of a $12.8 million restructuring charge Cognos took in the first quarter of its recently completed fiscal year. Company officials said the reversal was taken after restructuring charges proved to be lower than anticipated.
For the full year, Cognos nearly kept pace, recording revenues of $491.3 million, down slightly from $495.7 million the previous fiscal year. Net income for the year was down though, to $36.2 million from $64.3 million.
Software licensing revenue matched Cognos overall revenue in the quarter, falling slightly year-to-year from $75.9 million to $73 million. Though total BI revenue was up slightly from $132 million to $133.6 million.
The company began shipping the latest version of its platform, Cognos Series 7. Cognos officials report that the company booked a record seven deals worth more than $1 million as well as 89 contracts worth more than $200,000 during the fourth quarter.
“The outlook is positive, given the strong business momentum of the company,” said CEO Ron Zambonini, in a statement. “We will continue to focus on our business model to establish strong direct relationships with our customers, and on further strengthening our position in the market.”