Zscaler stock plunges despite reporting upbeat Q4 results

Zscaler  (NASDAQ: ZS) stock tumbled more than 15% as the earnings outlook was weaker than the market’s expectations. However, the company’s fourth quarter 2019 earnings results beat market’s estimates. The cloud security company’s non-GAAP earnings per share was $0.07 in Q4 compared to a net loss per share of $0.01 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018. Revenue jumped 53% year-over-year to $86 million.

Analysts had expected Zscaler to post earnings of $0.01 per share on revenue of $82.79 million for the fourth quarter. Zscaler stock, which ended down 0.68% at $61.60 today, crashed about 20% in the extended trading session.

GAAP net loss was $5.3 million compared to a loss of $7 million in the prior-year fourth quarter. Non-GAAP net income was $9.1 million, compared to net loss of $1.4 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018.

For the first quarter of fiscal 2020, Zscaler expects non-GAAP earnings per share to be $0.00 between $0.01 and revenue to be in the range of $89 million to $90 million. The market had expected the earnings to be 2 cents per share for Q1 2020.

Also read: Okta tops Q2 2020 estimates; stock drops on weak Q3 outlook

For the full year fiscal 2020, the San Jose, California-based company expects non-GAAP earnings per share to be in the range of $0.12 to $0.15 and revenue to be in the range of $395 million to $405 million. The market had expected the earnings to be 19 cents per share for fiscal 2020. Calculated billings are estimated to be $490 million to $500 million.

“Our strong fiscal 2019 results demonstrate our ability to drive growth and profitability while investing in our business, as we continue to see enterprises transforming their network and security to realize the benefits of the cloud,” said CEO Jay Chaudhry.

Today, Zscaler also appointed Dali Rajic as President Go-to-Market and Chief Revenue Officer. He most recently served as the Chief Customer and Revenue Officer for AppDynamics.

Shares of Zscaler have gained 57% so far this year and 35% in the past 12 months.

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