Zoom shares jump after the company tops estimates in first earnings report since IPO

Zoom rose as much as 12% on Thursday after the videoconferencing company reported better-than-expected financials and provided an optimistic forecast in its first earnings announcement since going public in April.

Here are the key numbers for Zoom’s fiscal first quarter:

• Earnings: 3 cents per share, excluding certain items. (CNBC does not compare earnings against estimates for first quarterly reports since an IPO.)
• Revenue: $122.0 million, vs. $111.7 million as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.

Zoom’s revenue more than doubled in the quarter, as businesses of all sizes signed on to the company’s software, which works across devices, including smartphones. CEO Eric Yuan previously wrote code for competing service WebEx, which Cisco bought in 2007.

The company said it expects earnings of 1 cent to 2 cents a share, excluding certain items, in the second quarter, on $129 million to $130 million in revenue. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv had been expecting Zoom to break even in the quarter, with $122.1 million in revenue.

Zoom’s forecast for the full fiscal year was 2 cents to 3 cents in earnings per share, excluding certain items, and $535 million to $540 million in revenue. The Refinitiv consensus estimates were a loss of 3 cents in earnings per share, excluding certain items, and revenue of $520.3 million.

Zoom was profitable at the time of its IPO in April, distinguishing it from most technology companies that have sought to go public in recent years.

“We believe the combination of very effective sales and marketing, a superior product to its direct competitors and significant long-term market opportunity highlight Zoom as a premier vendor moving forward,” Stifel analysts led by Tom Roderick wrote in a note in May. They placed a “hold” rating on the stock.

Shares of Zoom have risen more than 120% from the $36 price at which it sold shares in the IPO. Zoom’s primary risk for shareholders is the valuation, Patrick Walravens of JMP Securities wrote last month as he initiated coverage with a “market perform” rating.

In the fiscal first quarter Zoom had 405 customers paying more than $100,000 in revenue over the past year, up from 344 one quarter earlier.

Executives will discuss the results with analysts on a conference call at 5 p.m. Eastern time.

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