BlackBerry's (BB) Q1 Earnings Match Estimates, Revenues Beat

BlackBerry Limited (NYSE:BB) reported healthy first-quarter fiscal 2020 (ended May 31, 2019) financial results. This was primarily driven by growth in software and services business, and lower total operating expenses, which helped narrow GAAP net loss on a year-over-year basis.

Net Loss

On a GAAP basis, net loss for the quarter was $35 million or loss of 9 cents per share compared with net loss of $60 million or loss of 11 cents per share in the year-ago quarter. The year-over-year improvement was primarily driven by top-line growth and lower operating expenses.

However, non-GAAP net income came in at $5 million or 1 cent per share. The bottom line matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

Revenues

GAAP revenues increased 16% year over year to $247 million. Software and services revenues were $240 million, up 27%. Geographically, North America generated revenues of $160 million compared with $139 million in the year-ago quarter. Revenues from Europe, Middle East and Africa were $61 million, up 17.3% year over year, while revenues from other regions totaled $26 million, up 18.2%.

Non-GAAP revenues were $267 million compared with $217 million in the year-earlier quarter. The top line surpassed the consensus estimate of $249 million.

Segmental Performance

By product and service type, non-GAAP revenues from IoT increased 5.4% year over year to $137 million. BlackBerry Cylance non-GAAP revenues came in at $51 million, benefiting from its acquisition of cybersecurity firm, Cylance. This boosted the company’s software and services business as it has provided additional cyber security capabilities with advanced AI and machine learning technology. Non-GAAP revenues from Licensing were $72 million, up 14.3% year over year, while Other non-GAAP revenues decreased to $7 million from $24 million in the year-earlier quarter.

Other Details

Gross profit was $177 million or 71.7% of revenues compared with $161 million or 75.6% of revenues in the year-ago quarter. Total operating expenses decreased to $213 million from $226 million. This was due to favorable adjustment of debentures fair value. Operating loss was $36 million compared with operating loss of $65 million in the prior-year quarter, while non-GAAP operating income was $5 million.

Cash Flow

During first-quarter fiscal 2020, BlackBerry utilized $64 million of net cash from operations compared with cash utilization of $7 million in the year-ago quarter. On a reported basis, the company consumed $66 million of free cash flow in the quarter.

Liquidity

As of May 31, 2019, BlackBerry had $358 million in cash and equivalents with $645 million of long-term debt. The cybersecurity software and services company’s total cash, cash equivalents, short-term and long-term investments were $935 million as of the same date.

Outlook

BlackBerry has reiterated its outlook on non-GAAP revenue growth and non-GAAP profitability for fiscal 2020. The company expects non-GAAP revenue growth between 23% and 27%, on the back of double-digit percentage increase in billings. It anticipates non-GAAP revenues at IoT to grow 12-16% year over year, while the same for BlackBerry Cylance is likely to grow between 25% and 30%.

Non-GAAP revenues at Licensing is projected to decline 5% and non-GAAP service access fees are expected to be between $10 and $20 million of revenues in fiscal 2020. BlackBerry continues to invest in the right opportunities to drive long-term growth and profitability. The company’s strong product cycle together with more than 30 impending launches of new secure communication products and services instill optimism.

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

BlackBerry currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A few better-ranked stocks in the broader industry are Comtech Telecommunications Corp. (NASDAQ:CMTL) , Ubiquiti Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBNT) and Motorola Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MSI) . While Comtech and Ubiquiti sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Motorola carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Comtech has long-term earnings growth expectation of 5%.

Ubiquiti has long-term earnings growth expectation of 19.8%.

Motorola has long-term earnings growth expectation of 7.7%.

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