BlackBerry beats estimate for Q1 revenue on strong demand for cybersecurity services

BlackBerry

26/06/2024 22:59

June 26 (Reuters) - Canada's BlackBerry  BB.TO   BB.N 
beat first-quarter revenue estimates on Wednesday, driven by a
resilient demand for cybersecurity services in the wake of
growing online threats.
    U.S.-listed shares of the company, which provides
cybersecurity and data protection services to enterprises and
governments, rose 7.2% after the bell.  
    Over the past few months, companies such as the car industry
technology provider CDK, UnitedHealth Group's  UNH.N  Change
Healthcare unit and Live Nation Entertainment's  LYV.N 
Ticketmaster unit faced large-scale data breaches.
    Despite the wider slowdown in tech-spending, high-profile
hacks are forcing companies and government agencies to amp up
their cybersecurity spending to safeguard their data against
hackers and malware, boosting demand for cybersecurity firms
such as BlackBerry.
    The Waterloo-based company's quarterly revenue stood at $144
million, beating analysts' average estimate of $134.1 million,
according to LSEG data.
    The company reported an adjusted net loss of 3 cents per
share for the quarter ended May 31, compared with analysts'
average estimate of a loss of 4 cents.
    BlackBerry expects second-quarter revenue in the range of
$136 million to $144 million, whose mid-point is below analysts'
estimate of $142.4 million.
    In its cybersecurity unit, which provides intelligent
security software to enterprises and governments, the company
expects second-quarter revenue to be between $82 million and $86
million.
    It reiterated its full-year 2025 revenue and profit
forecast.
    Separately, BlackBerry teamed up with Advanced Micro Devices
 AMD.O  in April to develop a robotic system for the industrial
and healthcare sectors.

 (Reporting by Priyanka.G in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona)
 ((Priyanka.G@thomsonreuters.com;))