Thursday was a volatile day for U.S. equities, but the market finished the day with slight gains despite airline stocks falling 3.2% by day’s end. The S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Composite edged 0.1% higher apiece, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.5%.
The Thursday after-hours earnings news includes reports from KLA-Tencor Corp (NASDAQ:KLAC), Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) and Western Digital Corp (NASDAQ:WDC).
KLA-Tencor Corp (KLAC)
KLA-Tencor reached the halfway point of fiscal 2018 with a bang.
The semiconductor solutions provider reported second-quarter earnings of $1.97 per share, beating the Wall Street consensus estimate of $1.73 per share by 24 cents per share.
KLA-Tencor also impressed in the revenue front as the company raked in $976 million in sales during its most recent period. Analysts were calling for revenue of $968.81 million.
“KLA-Tencor reported a record quarter in December 2017, delivering new quarterly highs in shipments, revenues, gross margin, and non-GAAP earnings per diluted share in the period,” said Rick Wallace, president and CEO. Full year results in calendar 2017 also set records for each of these metrics, as well as in free cash flow generation.”
The company notes that shareholders have much to look forward to with KLA-Tencor in the long and short term.
KLAC stock edged 0.6% higher after the bell.
Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (ISRG)
Intuitive Surgical sold a high number of da Vinci systems in its latest quarter.
The device in question are high-powered robotic surgical devices that help assist surgeons in the workplace. The company shipped 216 da Vinci systems during its fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, ahead of the 163 systems sold in the year-ago quarter.
Intuitive Surgical posted a net loss of $38.8 million, or 35 cents per share during the quarter, below profit from the year-ago quarter of $204 million, or $1.71 per share.
The loss included a $318 million expense linked with the new U.S. tax reform laws. Excluding the expense, Intuitive Surgical earned $2.54 per share, ahead of the consensus estimate of $2.24 per share, according to Thomson Reuters.
Revenue was better by 17.8% year-over-year, reaching $892.4 million. Analysts were calling for sales of $864 million.
ISRG stock slumped 2.9% after hours Thursday.
Western Digital Corp (WDC)
Western Digital shares were clobbered following the company’s latest results.
The data storage devices maker and solutions provider reported revenue of $5.34 billion for its second quarter of fiscal 2018, topping the projection of $5.3 billion, according to Thomson Reuters. The figure improved 9% year-over-year.
Earnings for Western Digital’s quarter came in at a net loss of $823 million, or $2.78 per share, below the year-ago income of $235 million, or 80 cents per share. The loss was attributed to a $1.6 billion charge linked to the new tax laws.
On an adjusted basis excluding this charge, the company earned $3.95 per share, topping the $3.79 per share called for by the Wall Street consensus estimate, per Thomson Reuters.
The quarter was aided by an increased demand for Western Digital’s enterprise hard drives and flash-based products, according to CEO Steve Milligan. The company also added to its 500 workers to its payroll, which now includes a 71,300 workers around the world.
WDC stock fell 3.8% after Thursday’s market close.
As of this writing, Karl Utermohlen did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.
