Technology

Why Everyone Is Chasing Citrix Higher After Earnings

Chris Lange

Published: April 21, 2016 11:25 am

Last Updated: January 13, 2020 10:29 am

Citrix Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CTXS) released its first-quarter earnings report after the markets closed on Wednesday. The company said it had $1.18 in earnings per share (EPS) on $826 million in revenue. The consensus estimates were $0.93 in EPS on revenue of $789.4 million. In the same period of last year, Citrix posted EPS of $0.65 and $760.8 million in revenue.

A fair number of analysts were impressed by these results and decided to pour into the stock. We have included an analyst montage detailing how they view this stock after earnings.

During this quarter the company announced that two of its board members, Tom Bogan and Francis deSouza, will not be standing for reelection to board of directors. Both Bogan and deSouza are choosing this route to spend more time in their CEO roles at Adaptive Technologies and Illumina, respectively.

In terms of guidance for the second quarter, the company expects EPS to be in the range of $1.12 to $1.15, and for revenue to be in the range of $810 million to $820 million. The consensus estimates call for EPS of $1.11 and $813.83 million in revenue.

A few highlights from the first quarter include:

• Product and license revenue increased 10% to $202.2 million.
• Software as a service revenue increased 17% to $197.8 million.
• Revenue from license updates and maintenance increased 6% to $393.0 million.
• Professional services revenue, which is comprised of consulting, product training and certification, decreased 12% to $32.6 million.
• Deferred revenue totaled $1.6 billion at the end of the quarter.

Kirill Tatarinov, CEO for Citrix, commented:

We are seeing a strong improvement in our operating margin, and our focused strategy has made it easier for our field teams and channel partners to execute; consequently, we saw improvement in the top line. It gives us a measure of confidence that we are on the right path, and it gives us opportunities to solidify our leadership position in our core areas.

Cash flow from operations was $340 million for the first quarter. On the books, cash, equivalents and short-term investments totaled $1.16 billion at the end of the quarter, compared to $871.4 million at the end of 2015.

A few analysts weighed in on Citrix after the earnings report:

• Baird has an Outperform rating and raised its price target to $90 from $85.
• Barclays raised its price target to $90 from $88.
• Cowen has an Outperform rating and raised its price target to $92 from $85.
• Evercore ISI has a Hold rating with an $85 price target.
• Goldman Sachs has a Neutral rating and raised its price target to $83 from $73.
• Jefferies has a Hold rating and raised its price target to $80 from $67.
• Mizuho has a Neutral rating and raised its price target from $70 to $80.
• RBC has a Sector Perform rating and raised its price target to $90 from $80.
• Stifel raised its price target to $96 from $89.
• SunTrust Robinson has a Buy rating and raised its price target to $95 from $81.

Shares of Citrix were traded up about 6% to $85.16 on Thursday, with a consensus analyst price target of $80.88 and a 52-week trading range of $60.91 to $90.00.