CIENA CORP Quarterly Report for Q1 Ended Jan 31, 2012

Summary

Ciena Corporation (CIEN) reported its first quarter fiscal year 2012 results, ending January 31, 2012. The company experienced a year-over-year decline in total revenue, which fell to $416.7 million from $433.3 million in the prior year's comparable quarter. This revenue decrease was primarily driven by a significant drop in Packet-Optical Transport revenue, though partially offset by growth in Packet-Optical Switching and Software and Services. Despite the revenue decline, Ciena managed to significantly reduce its net loss to $47.7 million ($0.49 per share) from $79.1 million ($0.84 per share) in the first quarter of fiscal year 2011. This improvement in profitability was largely due to a substantial decrease in operating expenses, particularly in areas like acquisition and integration costs, and amortization of intangible assets. The company also generated positive cash flow from operations of $12.9 million, a marked improvement from the negative cash flow of $63.7 million in the prior year's first quarter.

Key Highlights

• 1Total revenue decreased by 3.8% year-over-year to $416.7 million.
• 2Net loss improved significantly to $47.7 million ($0.49 per share) from $79.1 million ($0.84 per share) in the prior year period.
• 3Operating expenses decreased by 17.9% to $198.9 million, driven by reductions in acquisition, integration, and amortization costs.
• 4The company generated positive cash flow from operations of $12.9 million, a substantial improvement from negative $63.7 million in the prior year.
• 5Packet-Optical Transport revenue, the largest segment, saw a 7.1% decline, while Packet-Optical Switching revenue grew by 23.1%.
• 6Cash and cash equivalents increased to $550.5 million from $541.9 million at the end of the previous fiscal year.
• 7The company's consolidated gross margin improved to 40.3% from 38.9% in the prior year period.

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