Manugistics says CFO quits, reports 2Q loss

Manugistics Group Inc. (Nasdaq: MANU) reported Wednesday a second quarter net loss of 13 cents a share, far below First Call's estimated profit of 2 cents a share. And by the way, its chief financial officer Peter Repetti resigned over two weeks ago.

Shares skidded down 16 percent, or 2 to 10 3/4 in morning trading.

The company reported a net loss for the quarter of approximately $3.4 million, or 13 cents a share compared to a net loss of $6 million, or 23 cents a share in the same quarter in the prior year. Manugistics only generated revenues of $33.8 million in this quarter, a drop from the previous year's revenues of $52.9 million.

While announcing results bad enough to make a CFO resign, the company snuck in the fact that theirs already did. Manugistics buried the news of Repetti's August 31 departure to "pursue other opportunities" at the bottom of its earnings announcement. The company has been actively recruiting for a replacement while retaining a senior financial consultant to assist management, the release added.

This quarter is a back flip from its first quarter, when the software vendor rewarded its new chief executive with the company's first profitable quarter in more than a year.

The company specializes in software for customer-centric supply chain optimization, used to improve the flow of product within and among companies. Twelve out of 13 analysts covering the stock rate it a 'hold" according to Zacks Investment research.