What happened
FireEye (MNDT) investors trailed the market last month as the stock lost 11% compared to a 2% decrease in the S&P 500, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence.
The slump pushed shares to a roughly 20% decline so far in 2019 against a 16% increase in the broader market.
Image source: Getty Images.
So what
August's drop came as investors digested mixed earnings results from the cybersecurity specialist. Sales landed just above the outlook that CEO Kevin Mandia and his team had issued for the period. Yet profitability posted a surprising dip as expenses jumped. FireEye posted a loss of $0.33 per share compared to a loss of $0.38 per share a year ago.
Now what
Mandia highlighted the company's strengthening billings metric for new products. That success is being offset by rising costs, though, and by the retirement of a few legacy products that also carried high profit margins. These dynamics add up to a weaker-than-expected 2019 outlook, and so FireEye's stock might remain stuck behind the market until these operating and financial conditions improve.
