What happened
The stock of O2Micro International (OIIM) fell today after the company reported its fourth-quarter 2020 results. Earnings per share outpaced Wall Street's expectations, but the company's sales during the quarter fell short of analysts' consensus estimate.
The tech stock was down by 11% as of 1:31 p.m. EST on Friday.
So what
O2Micro reported fourth-quarter sales of $23.2 million, up 30% year over year, which narrowly missed Wall Street's estimate of $23.3 million. But the company's fully diluted EPS of $0.14 beat the consensus estimate of $0.10.
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The company said in a press release that increasing demand for backlighting products and revenue from the company's battery products helped O2Micro grow during the quarter.
"These factors, along with continued management of operational costs, shows confidence that our business fundamentals are leading O2Micro into sustainable long-term profitability," CEO Sterling Du said in a statement.
But despite the earnings beat and revenue gains, investors weren't happy with the fourth-quarter results overall and pushed the company's share price down today.
Now what
Management forecast that first-quarter 2021 revenue will be in the range of $22.3 million to $24.6 million. This would be an increase of about 50% at the midpoint of guidance.
Investors shouldn't be too concerned about the modest share price loss today. The stock has rallied more than 500% over the past 12 months. And with O2Micro expecting more growth in the first quarter, investors may still have more to look forward to from this tech stock.