F5 Networks (FFIV) saw its stock surge after announcing revenues that exceeded expectations, trading above $85 per share for the first time in several months. Its revenues were up 5% year-over-year and 6% sequentially, to $370.3 million for its fiscal third quarter 2013.
GAAP net income was $68.2 million, down from $72.3 million in the same period a year ago.
“Results for the third quarter exceeded our expectations,” said John McAdam, F5’s president and CEO. “Strong sales in the Americas led to a 6% sequential increase in both product and overall revenue.”
McAdam added that product sales in the quarter were driven by its BIP-IP 4000 equipment and its new entry-level BIP-IP 2000 series. F5 released new BIP-IP 5000 and 7000 series appliances in late June and McAdam said the initial customer response “has been very encouraging.”
F5 has also stepped up its security software, including its new firewall manager and upgrades to its application security manager and access policy manager. McAdam said that demand for software-only virtual editions of products have also increased steadily.
F5 expects revenues to be between $378 million and $388 million for its next quarter, although the GAAP earnings target does include a charge of $2.5 million on a loss of a facility sublease.
