On Feb. 6, Blackboard (NASDAQ:BBBB) released its fourth-quarter earnings for the period ended Dec. 31.

  • Blackboard ended 2006 with 3,462 clients, an increase of 53% over 2005.
  • Net income declined by 99% because of the amortization expense associated with the acquisition of WebCT, increased R&D, and higher selling and marketing expenses.
  • For 2007, Blackboard expects high-end revenues to grow 28% to $235 million.
  • Motley Fool Hidden Gems selection Blackboard is a four-star stock in Motley Fool CAPS.

(Figures in thousands, except per-share data)

Income Statement Highlights

Q4 2006

Q4 2005

Change

Sales

$51,420.0

$35,746.0

43.8%

Net Profit

$201.0

$23,111.0

(99.1%)

EPS

$0.01

$0.79

(98.7%)

Diluted Shares

29,113.4

29,215.0

(0.3%)



Get back to basics with a look at the income statement.

Margin Checkup

Q4 2006

Q4 2005

Change*

Gross Margin

72.4%

70.6%

1.8

Operating Margin

3.3%

19.4%

(16.2)

Net Margin

0.4%

64.7%

(64.3)

*Expressed in percentage points.

Margins are the earnings engine. See how they work.

Balance Sheet Highlights

Assets

Q4 2006

Q4 2005

Change

Cash + ST Invest.

$30,776.0

$138,497.0

(77.8%)

Accounts Rec.

$52,394.0

$26,136.0

100.5%

Inventory

$2,377.0

$1,806.0

31.6%



Liabilities

Q4 2006

Q4 2005

Change

Accounts Payable

$2,238.0

$1,833.0

22.1%

Long-Term Debt

$23,377.0

$0.0

N/A



Learn the ways of the balance sheet.

Cash Flow Highlights

YTD 2006

YTD 2005

Change

Cash From Ops.

$21,805.0

$39,813.0

(45.2%)

Capital Expenditures

$10,081.0

$7,959.0

26.7%

Free Cash Flow

$11,724.0

$31,854.0

(63.2%)



Find out why Fools always follow the money.

Related Companies:

  • eCollege.com (NASDAQ:ECLG)
  • The Ultimate Software Group (NASDAQ:ULTI)
  • Saba Software (NASDAQ:SABA)
  • Microsoft (NYSE:MSFT)

Related Foolishness:

Blackboard is a Motley Fool Hidden Gems recommendation. If you're interested in small-cap companies with great potential, take a free 30-day trial to Hidden Gems. Just click here to get started. Microsoft is a Motley Fool Inside Value recommendation.

Fool by Numbers is designed to give you the raw earnings information in a timely fashion, putting all the numbers you need in one easy-to-read place. But at The Motley Fool, we believe numbers tell only part of the story, so check Fool.com for more of our in-depth discussion of what the numbers mean. This data has been provided by Netscribes. To provide feedback on this article, please click on the "feedback" button below.