BlackBerry Ltd. BB shares declined in after-hours trading Thursday after the company released preliminary fourth-quarter numbers that came up short amid troubles closing cybersecurity-software deals. BlackBerry reported a year-over-year decline in revenue to $151 million from $185 million, while analysts on average were expecting $154.7 million, according to FactSet. The company reported a loss of $495 million, or 85 cents a share, after reporting a loss of 3 cents a share in the same quarter a year ago. After adjusting for stock compensation and some large impairment benefits, the company reported an adjusted loss of 2 cents a share, down from adjusted earnings of a penny a share a year ago. Analysts on average were projecting an adjusted loss of 8 cents a share, according to FactSet. BlackBerry executives said that they were having issues closing new deals for cybersecurity software — a key segment for a company more well-known for its former cellphone business — as companies and governments increase scrutiny on new costs. “Macro challenges were a key factor for BlackBerry’s Cybersecurity business unit this quarter, with elongated sales cycles in government causing some large deals to slip into later quarters,” Chief Executive John Chen said in a statement. BlackBerry executives said they would provide more detail, including an outlook for the new fiscal year, in a conference call scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Eastern, and expect to revise long-term targets for its cybersecurity business at a May 17 analyst day presentation. BlackBerry shares declined more than 1% in after-hours trading, following a 0.5% gain to $4 in regular trading. The stock has dropped more than 47% in the past 12 months, as the S&P 500 index SPX has declined 17.3%, but has been moving higher this year, increasing 23.1% year-to-date.
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