Why BroadSoft's Shares Flopped

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 BroadSoft (NAS: BSFT) fell as much as 18% today after reporting underwhelming revenue figures, though beating expectations for earnings per share. The company's forward guidance was also disappointing.

So what: BroadSoft's third-quarter revenue came in $1.3 million below the consensus estimate of $41.5 million, but its adjusted EPS results, at $0.35, beat the Street by 3 cents. However, fourth-quarter projections of $43 million to $48 million in revenue come in at the midpoint of analyst expectations of $45.9 million, and EPS projections of $0.33 to $0.48 are on the low side of the $0.43 consensus.

For the full year, revenue projections between $162 million and $167 million look weak compared with Wall Street's expectation of $166.3 million, although adjusted EPS guidance of $1.30 to $1.45 was reasonable in light of the Street's EPS expectations of $1.37.

Now what: BroadSoft's stock isn't cheap at a 51 P/E, even after this big drop, and investors seem to be waking up to the possibility that the company's growth may be slowing. However, analysts at both William Blair and Needham view today's drop as a possible buying opportunity. In its earnings call, BroadSoft pointed to macroeconomic uncertainty (a topic that seems to pop up in almost every underwhelming report) as the source of its wide guidance range, which colors this as a slightly more speculative stock than it may have been in the recent past. I'd stay on the sidelines and watch for greater clarification on just how big an impact this "macroeconomic uncertainty" will have.

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The article Why BroadSoft's Shares Flopped originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Alex Planes holds no financial position in any company mentioned here. Add him on Google+ or follow him on Twitter, @TMFBiggles, for more news and insights. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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