Mentor Graphics Earnings Come in Light; Sees Macro Concerns

Mentor Graphics (MENT) Thursday afternoon reported revenue for its fiscal third quarter ended October 31 of $186.3 million, short of the Street consensus of $190.5 million, but consistent with its recent reduced guidance. The company broke even on a non-GAAP basis; the Street had expected a profit of 4 cents a share. Mentor said that “unfortunately, revenue timing issues on certain key orders impacted results for the quarter.”

The company said it is affirming previous guidance for fiscal 2008 and 2009. For ‘08, Mentor sees revenue of $860 million and non-GAAP EPS of $1.02; for ‘09, $920 million and $1.22. The Street had been expecting profits of 98 cents for this year, $1.19 for next.

In a statement, President Gregory Hickley says the company sees “mixed economic signals.”

“From our industry perspective, we see positive forward indicators like venture company funding to fabless semiconductor startups up sharply in the third quarter to the highest level since 2001, our consulting bookings up 50%, training bookings up 95% and new customer logos up 10%,” he said. “Nonetheless, our actual results highly depend upon the condition of the U.S. economy where risks in recent weeks seem to be growing. If the U.S. economy slows in the fourth quarter, our ability to meet guidance will be challenged.”

In after hours trading, Mentor is down 65 cents, or 5%, at $12.25.