Tableau expects strong revenue as data analysis demand rises
By Chandni Doulatramani
(Reuters) - Data analysis software maker Tableau Software Inc forecast better-than-expected current-quarter revenue after reporting quarterly results that handily beat analysts' estimates, sending its shares up 16 percent in extended trading.
License sales of the company's business intelligence software jumped 93 percent to $58.0 million, with existing customers contributing 66 percent of total license revenue.
"The company also experienced acceleration in large deal sign-ups and new customer signings given that this was the fourth quarter and momentum remains in their favor," Mizuho Securities U.S.A. analyst Abhey Lamba said in a note.
Tableau said it closed 179 sales orders of greater than $100,000 and added more than 1,800 customer accounts in the fourth quarter. The company now has 17,000 customer accounts.
The company said it expects first-quarter revenue of $61 million to $63 million, beating analysts' average expectation of $60.3 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Tableau's software is used by companies such as Google Inc, Deere & Co, Sears Holdings Corp and affiliates of Verizon Communications Inc to retrieve large volumes of data. The software also helps users analyze, visualize and share information.
The company posted a net income of $11.2 million, or 16 cents per share, in the fourth quarter, compared with a loss of $1.1 million, or 3 cents per share, a year earlier.
Excluding items, earnings were 20 cents per share.
Revenue nearly doubled to $81.5 million.
Analysts on average had expected Tableau to break even on a per share basis on revenue of $67.1 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
The company's shares closed at $79.43 on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. Tableau had a blockbuster debut in May, with its shares rising as much as 68 percent.
(Reporting by Chandni Doulatramani in Bangalore; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)
