Nuance Communications moves to loss in fiscal 2nd quarter, but results top Wall Street views

Nuance reports fiscal 2Q loss with higher expenses

BURLINGTON, Mass. — Speech-recognition software maker Nuance Communications Inc. said Monday that it moved to a loss in its fiscal second quarter as expenses more than offset an increase in revenue.

The company’s adjusted results beat analyst expectations, however.

For the quarter ended March 31, Nuance reported a loss of $15.4 million, or 5 cents per share, compared with a profit of $5.3 million, or 2 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.

Excluding one-time items such as costs related to acquisitions, Nuance earned 28 cents per share in the latest quarter, which is a penny more than analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected.

Revenue rose 19 percent to $273 million, helped by growth in product and licensing and professional services and hosting revenues. When including $19.8 million in revenue lost to an accounting treatment linked to the company’s acquisitions, revenue totaled $292.8 million.

Analysts projected $282.9 million in revenue.

Operating expenses climbed 40 percent to $175.7 million.

Nuance shares fell 53 cents, or 3.1 percent, to $16.85 in after-hours trading. The stock earlier finished regular trading up 96 cents, or 5.9 percent, at $17.38. The stock has ranged from $10.90 to $18.55 over the past year.