Logility disappoints in fourth quarter

Business software developer Logility posted a loss of $646,000, or 5 cents a share, on sales of $6.9 million in its fourth quarter Tuesday, roughly matching the figures it preannounced earlier this quarter.

The lone analyst covering the stock predicted it would earn 3 cents a share in the quarter, though the Atlanta-based company told the Street in May to expect a loss of between $600,000 to $900,000.

Ahead of the earnings report, Logility (Nasdaq: LGTY) shares moved up 21/32 to 4 3/4.

Company officials blamed the disappointing results on purchasing delays by customers. Contracts in the enterprise software industry often aren't signed until the final weeks of a quarter.

"We do believe that a number of these accounts will close in future quarters," CEO J. Michael Edenfield said at the time.

The $6.9 million, which fell within the company's revised range of $6.5 million to $7 million, marks a 13 percent decline from the year-ago quarter when it earned $381,000, or 3 cents a share, on sales of $7.8 million.

For the fiscal year, Logility earned $2.4 million, or 17 cents a share, on sales of $32.3 million, a 20 percent improvement from the $8.1 million, or 50 cents a share, it lost in fiscal 1999 on sales of $27 million.

"We are pleased that Logility completed a profitable fiscal year 2000, with revenues growing 20 percent,'' Edenfield said in a prepared release Tuesday. "We are optimistic about our ability to grow based on the strength of our solutions, the addition of a number of strategic partners and our ability to power customer success for B2B e-commerce."

Logility shares moved up to a 52-week high of 23 5/8 in December after bottoming out at 2 3/4 in October.

Analysts expect it to return a profit of 18 cents a share in fiscal 2001.