Symantec surprised the market by reporting a 43% increase in fourth-quarter revenue to $556 million compared with revenue of $390 million for the same period a year earlier.
Net income soared from $68 million to $117 million while earnings per share of $0.33 compared with $0.21 a year earlier.
The group had forecast revenue of between $500 million and $520 million and said earlier this year that if revenue came in at the middle of that range it would report earnings of $0.30 a share.
Revenue for the year to 2 April, rose by 33% to $1.87 billion from $1.41 billion the previous year, while net income of $371 million compared with $248 million previously.
This equated to earnings of $1.07 a share compared with $0.77 a share for fiscal 2003.
The performance has also prompted Symantec to increase its fiscal 2005 guidance. Revenue for the quarter to 2 July is expected to be between $525 million to $555 million, with earnings per share of $0.30 at the midpoint of the revenue range.
It expects full-year revenue of about $2.34 billion.
The group says that during the fourth quarter it signed 264 contracts worldwide worth more than $100 000 each, including 70 worth more than $300 000 and 11 worth more than $1 million each.
Share
