Qlik Technologies Shares Plunged: What You Need to Know

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of data analysis software specialist Qlik Technologies (NAS: QLIK) sank as low as 10.5% on Friday after its quarterly results missed Wall Street expectations.

So what: Qlik's fourth-quarter profit surged 47%, but a miss on its adjusted EPS -- $0.23 versus the consensus $0.26 -- suggests that its breakneck growth is slowing. Unfortunately, year-over-year expenses are growing faster than revenues at this point, triggering concerns over the company's long-term profitability, as well.

Now what: Management now sees full-year adjusted EPS of $0.40-$0.44 on revenue of $405 million-$415 million, versus the consensus of $0.43 on a top-line of just $400 million. "As we look to 2012, we will continue to invest in the business in order to drive growth by expanding our employee base and further extending our Business Discovery leadership position," said CEO Lars Bjork. "At the same time, we expect to realize leverage in the business and expand operating margins." Given today's pullback and Qlik's still rock-solid balance sheet, patient investors should consider betting on that outlook.

Interested in more info onQlik?Add it to your watchlist.

At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributor Brian Pacampara owns no position in any of the companies mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of Qlik. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Qlik. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days.We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Fool's disclosure policy always gets a perfect score.

Copyright © 1995 - 2012 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.