Bethel Finance: Check Point posts record results for 2011

Bethel Finance news:
"The fourth quarter provided a great finish to an excellent year with revenues and earnings reaching all-time highs, and exceeding our initial projections for the year," said Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (Nasdaq: CHKP) chairman and CEO Gil Shwed in response to the company's record results for the fourth quarter of 2011 and the year as a whole, which beat the analysts' consensus.

For the fourth quarter, revenue rose 12% to $356.8 million from $318.5 million for the corresponding quarter of 2010. GAAP-based net profit rose 16% to $159.8 million ($0.75 per share) for the fourth quarter from $137.4 million for the corresponding quarter, and non-GAAP net profit rose 15% to $178.1 million ($0.84 per share) from $156.2 million. The analysts' consensus was earnings per share of $0.82 on $355.6 million revenue.

Cash flow from operations rose to $173.2 million for the fourth quarter from $162.8 million for the corresponding quarter, and rose to 714.9 million in 2011 from $674.1 million in 2010. The company's cash and marketable securities rose to $2.88 billion at the end of December from $2.41 billion a year earlier, despite buying back $75 million worth of shares during the fourth quarter.

For the year as a whole, Check Point's revenue rose 14% to $1.25 billion from $1.1 billion in 2010. GAAP-based and net profit rose 20% to $544 million ($2.54 per share) from $452.8 million in 2010, and non-GAAP net profit rose 16% to $613.6 million ($2.87 per share) from $528 million. The analysts' consensus was earnings per share of $2.85 on $1.25 million revenue.

Deferred revenue totaled $552.2 million at the end of December, 19% more than the $464.6 million a year earlier.

Shwed added, "We experienced exceptional performance across all key business metrics: products, annuity software blades and services. We continued to expand and elevate the security of our customers with the introduction of new and innovative software blades throughout the year."

Check Point's share price fell 2.7% yesterday to $50.90, giving a market cap of $10.6 billion.