Educational software company Blackboard Inc. said Wednesday that it swung to a first-quarter loss as rising product revenue was overshadowed by climbing operating expenses.
For the quarter that ended March 31, Blackboard reported a loss of $3.3 million, or 11 cents per share, compared to a profit of $1.9 million, or 7 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. On an adjusted basis, Blackboard earned 6 cents per share in the first quarter.
The company's revenue rose 23.9 percent year over year to $68.5 million.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected the company to break even on $65.5 million in revenue. The estimates generally exclude special items.
Blackboard's product revenue rose 26.3 percent to $63.1 million, while professional services revenue increased 1.3 percent to $5.4 million.
The company said it saw ongoing strong growth in licensing and managed hosting sales and better-than-anticipated results from its recently completed purchase of The NTI Group.
Blackboard's operating expenses also rose, climbing 41.2 percent to $72.9 million, with acquisition-related expenses and sales and marketing expenses rising. The company's cost of product revenues also rose.
Blackboard shares fell 47 cents to $35 in after-hours trading after finishing the regular session down 37 cents at $35.47.
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