Plantronics Beats Q3 Guidance, Says Q4 Looks Weak

Plantronics (PLT) Tuesday afternoon reported revenue for the fiscal third quarter ended December of $232.8 million, with non-GAAP EPS of 50 cents a share. The company had previously projected revenue of $230 million to $235 million and non-GAAP EPS of 37-42 cents.

That’s good. What’s not so goods is the outlook. Plantronics sees revenue for the fiscal fourth quarter of $195 million to $205 million, below the consensus estimate of $211.3 million. The company sees non-GAAP EPS of 24-32 cents a share, below the Street estimate of 33 cents. The company said that the order rate in January in its U.S. office and contact center business is running below that of a year ago due to “deteriorating economic conditions.” The company said that with increased economic uncertainty, its business “is even more difficult to forecast than usual.” The company expects sequential revenue declines in both its audio communications group and its audio entertainment group, with an non-GAAP operating loss in the audio entertainment group exceeding that of the third quarter.

In the regular session, Plantronics shares rose 47 cents, to $19.32.