Research firm Corporate Executive Board’s shares fall on weak 2010 forecast

Weak outlook fells Corporate Executive Board stock

ARLINGTON, Va. — Shares of research firm The Corporate Executive Board Co. fell more than 7 percent Wednesday after the company warned its 2010 earnings and revenue will fall below expectations, as its corporate clients continue to spend cautiously.

The company, which provides research and analyses of business problems, expects to earn 85 cents per share to $1.10 per share, excluding one-time items. It expects to post revenue of $385 million to $405 million.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters on average are forecasting the company will earn $1.23 per share for its fiscal 2010 on revenue of $418.2 million. Analysts typically exclude one-time items.

The shares fell $1.64, or 7.2 percent, to close at $21.29 on Wednesday.

Late Tuesday, the company — based in Arlington, Va. — reported a fourth-quarter profit of $13.4 million, or 39 cents per share, on revenue of $108 million.

That compares with a loss of $5.8 million, or 17 cents per share, a year earlier, when the company recorded $27.5 million in impairment costs. Revenue was $136.7 million.

Backing out one-time items, the company earned 40 cents per share in the 2009 quarter, compared with a profit of 45 cents per share in the prior year.

Both earnings and revenue beat the forecasts of analysts, who expected the company to report profit of 24 cents per share and revenue of $101.3 million.