Ciena-Zahlen

Ciena Reports First-Quarter Loss
Ciena Reports First-Quarter Loss on Falling Revenue

The Associated Press



LINTHICUM, Md. Feb. 21
Optical networking-equipment maker Ciena reported a $70.6 million first-quarter loss on Wednesday and warned that revenues would continue to fall because of spending cutbacks by its biggest customers.

Ciena said it lost 22 cents a share, compared with earnings of $53.2 million, or 18 cents a share, for the first quarter of 2001. The most recent results include $13.9 million in one-time charges that included restructuring costs and losses on equity investments. Excluding the one-time charges, Ciena said it lost $56.7 million, or 17 cents a share.

On that basis, analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial/First Call had expected the company to report a loss of 20 cents, but had widened their loss estimates from 11 cents in the past two weeks.

The company's shares fell more than 12 percent after the earnings announcement, dropping $1.10 to $7.60 each Thursday on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

Revenue for the quarter was $162.2 million, less than half the $352 million reported for the first quarter of 2001. The company said it expected revenue for the second quarter to be about $100 million.

Ciena President and CEO Gary Smith said two of the company's biggest customers recently informed told Ciena that they will purchase "significantly less from us than they had previously indicated." Ciena did not identify the customers.

"There continues to be a high level of uncertainty surrounding service providers' near-term spending," Smith said. "In our ongoing conversations with our customers, we continue to receive indications of further deployment delays."