Adobe earnings beat estimates

Software maker Adobe Systems edged past expectations Thursday, reporting quarterly profit and revenue that were way down from a year ago but a slight improvement sequentially. Adobe reported diluted earnings of $49.8 million, or 20 cents a share, for its first quarter, ended March 1. That compares with $69.8 million and 28 cents a share in the same period a year ago and $34.3 million and 14 cents a share in the previous quarter. Adobe, which mainly makes software for electronic and print publishing, has been hit hard by the advertising downturn. But the release of a new version of Photoshop, the company's flagship graphics product, is expected to boost earnings this year. Excluding one-time charges, first-quarter earnings came in at 22 cents a share. On that basis, analysts polled by financial-research company First Call expected earnings of 20 cents a share. First-quarter revenue came in at $267.9 million, compared with $329 million a year ago and $264.5 million in the previous quarter. The company said in a statement that it expects revenue to rise significantly for the second quarter, setting a range of $305 million to $325 million. Per-share earnings were projected to between 24 cents and 27 cents. --David Becker, Special to ZDNet News