Adjusted earnings rose year-over-year to $0.71 per share from $0.48 per share last year and surpassed the market’s projection. Reported profit advanced to $86.7 million or $0.55 per share from $50.8 million or $0.34 per share in the third quarter of 2018.
Revenues of Networking Platforms, Ciena’s core business segment, moved up 17.5% to $796 million in the third quarter, while Software and Software-Related Services recorded a 16% growth to $47.8 million. There was a 17% growth in Global Services revenues to $116.7 million. Geographically, all regions except the Asia Pacific registered growth.
Gary Smith, CEO of Ciena, said, “We delivered another quarter of outstanding financial results as we benefit from our strong competitive position within the industry and continue to gain market share. Looking ahead, fiscal 2019 will be an extraordinary year for Ciena, including substantial revenue growth and increased profitability.”
During the three-month period, the management repurchased around 1.1 million shares for $45.4 million.
The positive outcome reflects the management’s diversification initiatives with a focus on global expansion. Of late, there has been a shift in Ciena’s business strategy so as to reduce reliance on the legacy telecom sector and focus more on emerging areas like the data-center business.
The company’s stock gained about 8% early Thursday immediately after the earnings announcement, after closing the previous session higher.