After releasing results for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2014, hard-drive manufacturer Seagate Technology (STX +0.00%) traded 1.5% lower in after-hours action.
In the fourth quarter, Seagate's sales declined 3% year over year to stop at $3.3 billion. Adjusted earnings fell 9%, to $1.10 per diluted share. Both figures were in line with analyst expectations. Free cash flows jumped 72% higher, stopping at $446 million.
The company also announced its next quarterly dividend payment in this report. Payable on August 22 to shareholders of record as of August 8, this installment holds steady at $0.43 per share for the fourth quarter in a row.
In a prepared statement, Seagate CEO Steve Luczo said that future growth is resting on a number of recently closed acquisitions. Properties such as external storage specialist LaCie, and hard-drive parts supplier Xyratex, will expand Seagate's business into new markets such as cloud storage and flash-based SSD solutions. Moreover, Xyratex and the hard-drive division of Korean tech giant Samsung have reinforced Seagate's spinning-platter operations.
"The shifting information technology market dynamics are disrupting the traditional storage industry in meaningful ways and continue to create more opportunities for Seagate," Luczo said.
