Why Fusion-io Shares Tanked Hard

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 Fusion-io have tanked hard today, down by 19% at the low, after the company reported earnings with soft guidance.

So what: Revenue in the fiscal second quarter was $120.6 million, which was a new quarterly record. Non-GAAP earnings per share came in at $0.13. The real culprit to the drop was in the guidance. Fusion-io expects sales in the current quarter to be $80 million, with fiscal 2013 sales in the range of $420 million to $440 million.

Now what: That outlook is far short of the $137 million in sales that investors were expecting this quarter, and the $530 million that they thought was in order for fiscal 2013. CFO Dennis Wolf said the shortfall was due to order delays at the company's two largest customers, referring to Facebook and Apple. The social network and Mac maker have shifted their bulk purchases by two quarters, and CEO David Flynn says that's actually a testament to how much efficiency Fusion-io's products are creating in data centers, which reduces the need for more purchases. Unfortunately, investors are not impressed.

Interested in more info on Fusion-io? Add it to your watchlist by clicking here.

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The article Why Fusion-io Shares Tanked Hard originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Evan Niu, CFA, owns shares of Apple. The Motley Fool recommends Apple and Facebook. The Motley Fool owns shares of Apple and Facebook. 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 Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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