Brocade: Fiscal 4Q12 Financial Results

Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. reported financial results for its fourth quarter and full fiscal year 2012 ended October 27, 2012.

It reported record fourth quarter revenue of $578 million, representing an increase of 5% year-over-year and 4% quarter-over-quarter. Revenue for fiscal year 2012 was $2,238 million, a record for the company, up 4% year-over-year.

The resulting GAAP diluted earnings per share was $0.11 for Q4 and $0.41 for fiscal 2012, on record annual net income of $195 million. Non-GAAP diluted EPS was $0.17 for Q4, the fifth consecutive quarter of year-over-year EPS growth, and $0.66 for the year.

"Q4 was an excellent quarter for Brocade and a strong ending for fiscal year 2012 during which we established a number of company records including revenue, net income, and operating cash flow," said Michael Klayko, CEO of Brocade. "Our product portfolio across all areas of our business is the strongest it has ever been and we are driving industry transformation in emerging areas of growth including virtualized data centers, cloud computing, and software-defined networking. We believe Brocade is well-positioned for continued growth in fiscal 2013."

Summary of Q4 and fiscal 2012 results:

• Q4 2012 SAN business revenue, including products and services, was $394 million, up 9% year-over-year and 4% quarter-over-quarter. SAN product revenue increased 12% year-over-year and 5% quarter-over-quarter, in a seasonally strong quarter for the company. Brocade’s 16 Gbps FC products represented nearly 35% of director and switch revenue in the quarter. Fiscal 2012 SAN business revenue was $1,578 million, up 7% year-over-year. Q4 2012 total SAN port shipments were approximately 1.13 million.
• Q4 2012 IP networking business revenue, including products and services, was $184 million, down 3% year-over-year and up 4% quarter-over-quarter. Ethernet switch revenue was up 5% year-over-year and 1% quarter-over-quarter, while routing revenue was down 10% year-over-year and up 9% quarter-over-quarter. From a customer standpoint, federal and service provider revenues were both up sequentially, while enterprise revenue was lower. Fiscal 2012 IP networking business revenue was $659 million, down slightly year-over-year.
• Q4 2012 GAAP gross margin was 62.4% and non-GAAP gross margin was 64.8%, compared with 59.5% and 62.9% in Q4 2011, respectively. The year-over-year improvement in gross margin was due to higher revenue, favorable product mix, and lower fixed costs. Fiscal 2012 GAAP and non-GAAP gross margin improved to 61.8% and 64.5%, respectively, compared with 59.8% and 62.5% in fiscal 2011, due to higher revenue and favorable product mix.
• GAAP operating margin was 14.9% and non-GAAP operating margin was 22.5% in Q4 2012, compared with 9.9% and 21.0% in Q4 2011, respectively. Operating margin expanded both year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter on higher revenue and improved gross margin. Fiscal 2012 GAAP operating margin was 12.4% and non-GAAP operating margin was 20.5%, compared with 8.3% and 17.6% in fiscal 2011, respectively. The improvement in operating margin for the full year was a result of higher gross margin and lower operating expenses as a percentage of revenue.
• Fiscal 2012 GAAP EPS of $0.41 was up 310% year-over-year on net income of $195 million, up more than 280% year-over-year. Fiscal 2012 non-GAAP EPS of $0.66 was up 33% year-over-year on non-GAAP net income of $311 million, up 26% year-over-year.
  Average diluted shares outstanding for Q4 2012 were lower by 11.7 million from Q4 2011, principally from share repurchases during the past year, including 11.2 million shares ($60 million) repurchased during Q4 2012.
• Operating cash flow was $210 million in Q4 2012 and $591 million in fiscal 2012, both records. During the quarter, the company paid the remaining $30 million of its term loan and ended the year with a cash balance of $713 million and cash, net of debt, of $108 million.