Profits go west as Trend Micro expands from the east

Antivirus software specialist reduces sales forecast

By John Leyden, 3rd August 2001

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Trend Micro, the world's fourth largest provider of anti-virus software, has cut its sales forecast as it reported results that showed it making a loss after taking a number of one-off charges into account.

The Japanese firm said its operating profit for the calendar year up to June 30 was ¥3 billion ($24.3 million), up slightly from ¥2.97 billion ($24.0 million) in the same period last year.

However one off charges of ¥3 billion ($24.3 million) to deal with a change in the way accounts for sales and ¥2 billion ($16.8 million) connected with the canning of Trend's server software developer unit IP Trend, took the firm into the red. The firm posted a loss of ¥1.38 billion (11.2 million) compared to profits of ¥2.47 billion ($20 million) for the same period last year.

Trend's sales increased more than a third to ¥12.94 billion ($105 million) from ¥9.6 billion ($77.7 million), as it enjoyed success in expanding overseas, with particularly good results in Europe.

However Bloomberg reports the cost of this expansion, and a projected drop in demand for its antivirus software products, has forced Trend to reduce its full year forecast by 62 per cent.

According to the news agency, the firm now expects to record sales of ¥29 billion ($234 million) and profits of ¥1.8 billion ($14.6 million) for 2001, which compares to earlier projected sales of ¥30 billion ($243 million) and profits of ¥4.7 billion ($38 million). ®