Synopsys 4Q Results, 1Q View Meet Street's Estimates

Synopsys Inc. (NASDAQ:SNPS) posted fourth-quarter results and gave first quarter and full-year guidance that was in-line with expectations, as the software company benefits from increased spending in the technology sector.

The company forecast first-quarter earnings in the range of 38 to 41 cents a share on revenue between $360 million to $368 million, in line with analyst forecasts for earnings of 41 cents a share on revenue of $363 million.

For the full year, the software company expects earnings ranging from $1.67 to $1.77 a share on revenue between $1.5 billion and $1.53 billion, meeting the Street’s view of $1.75 a share on revenue of $1.47 billion.

For the fiscal fourth quarter, the company posted profit of $25.4 million, or 17 cents a share, compared with year-ago earnings of $19.5 million ,or 13 cents a share. Adjusted earnings improved to 39 cents a share, up from 33 cents, one year ago.

Revenue rose 11% to $375.5 million, compared with $338.28 million in the fiscal fourth quarter of last year.

The results met expectations, as analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had predicted adjusted earnings of 39 cents a share on revenue of $355.58 million.

"Synopsys had a strong year, relative to the industry and our expectations, and we enter fiscal 2011 with an even better outlook," said Aart de Geus, chairman and CEO of Synopsys, in a statement. "Building on significant technology and customer momentum, and an improved customer landscape, we expect to deliver growth in both traditional EDA and the adjacencies in which we've been steadily investing over the past several years."

Shares of Synopsys rose 82 cents, or 3.19%, to close at $26.51 on Wednesday. The stock was down 54 cents, or 2.04%, in after-hours trading.