Wall Street started November on a positive footing, and as has been common recently, the biggest move came from the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC +0.83%). Shortly after the market opened, the Nasdaq was up by between 1% and 1.5%, recovering the lost ground from Monday's session.
A couple of companies saw particularly sizable moves in their share prices after releasing their financial reports Tuesday morning. SoFi Technologies (SOFI 1.30%) was a big winner after delivering an upbeat reading on its business condition, but Varonis Systems (VRNS 5.61%) found itself moving in the opposite direction.
SoFi is so high
Shares of SoFi Technologies, which have been beaten down over the past year, popped by more than 18% early Tuesday morning as the online banking and financial services company's third-quarter results restored some confidence among investors in the stock.
The latest numbers from SoFi continued a trend that investors have seen in many up-and-coming companies lately. Its revenue soared 56% year over year to nearly $424 million, but its losses continued to balloon, too, climbing to $74.2 million or $0.09 per share. However, SoFi's adjusted pre-tax operating earnings figure more than quadrupled to $44.3 million.
NASDAQ: SOFI
Key Data Points
Management pointed to dramatic upticks in membership and product adoption. The company now serves more than 4.7 million members, up 61% from 12 months ago, and those customers use nearly 7.2 million of SoFi's products, representing year-over-year growth of 69%. It saw particular strength in lending products, as big gains in personal loans offset steep declines in home and student loan volumes. SoFi's Galileo technology platform also contributed substantially to its overall growth.
Investors were further pleased to see management lift its guidance again, with a $9 million boost to its outlook on 2022 adjusted revenue and an $11 million increase in its adjusted pre-tax operating earnings projection for the year. Yet even with the morning's healthy gains, SoFi shares are still trading at less than half the price at which they began 2022, and the company will have to prove it can cut back on its promotional spending to generate real customer growth over the long run.
Varonis gets crushed
Meanwhile, shares of Varonis Systems were down 33% Tuesday morning. The software-as-a-service (SaaS) data security and analytics specialist reported third-quarter financial results that failed to inspire confidence in traders and shareholders.
NASDAQ: VRNS
Key Data Points
The company's slowing growth was the primary cause for concern. Sales climbed just 23% to $123 million, with subscription-based revenue rising at a slightly higher 37% year-over-year rate. Net losses widened a bit to $28.7 million, working out to $0.26 per share.
Varonis management tried to emphasize some of the more positive aspects of its operating metrics. Annual recurring revenue climbed 26% to $448 million. The company has done a reasonably good job cross-selling its products -- more than three-quarters of its larger customers have purchased four or more licenses on its platform.
Yet shareholders weren't happy to hear that management had reduced its 2022 financial outlook. The SaaS company now anticipates full-year sales will land in the $470 million to $473 million range, up just 20% to 21% from 2021 levels. A modest adjusted profit of $0.14 per share to $0.15 per share would be welcome, but that wasn't enough to inspire investors to jump into the stock. Even news of a $100 million share repurchase authorization didn't have much of a positive impact on the share price.
Growth investors have no tolerance for slowing sales gains, even with macroeconomic headwinds making business conditions difficult. Varonis is just the latest in a long line of tech companies having to deal with this type of investor disappointment, and as this earnings season continues, you can expect to see more stocks taking plunges like this in the weeks ahead.
