DivX 4th-qtr results and guidance better than analysts expected, shares rise in late trading

DivX 4Q results better than expected; shares rise

SAN DIEGO — Video technology company DivX Inc. reported an adjusted profit well above Wall Street expectations on Wednesday and issued guidance that was also better than expected. Its shares jumped in late trading.

The adjusted profit was 7 cents per share, well ahead of the 2 cents per share expected by analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

Without adjusting for one-time items, DivX lost $34,000, or less than 1 cent per share, during the quarter that ended Dec. 31, down from a profit of $2.6 million, or 8 cents per share, during the fourth quarter of 2008.

Revenue fell 13 percent to $20.1 million, from $23.2 million a year earlier.

The company said it expects first-quarter revenue of $20.5 million to $21.5 million, with per-share results ranging between a loss of 2 cents and break-even. Excluding one-time items, that would be a profit of 4 cents to 6 cents per share. Analysts were expecting a profit of 3 cents per share.

CEO Kevin Hell said the fourth quarter ended with “strong financial results well ahead of our guidance.”

For the full year, it earned $131,000, or break-even per share, down from a 2008 profit of $10 million, or 30 cents per share. Revenue fell 25 percent to $70.6 million from $93.9 million in 2008.

DivX shares fell 11 cents to close at $6.01 before the announcement. They rose $1, or 17 percent, to $7.01 in late trading.