Brief: CA Warns Of Disappointing 4Q Earnings

Preliminary financial results for CA's 2006 fiscal fourth quarter indicate substantially poorer-than-expected earnings, the software company said Tuesday.

For the quarter ended March 31, CA said it expects earnings of 0 cents to 2 cents per share on revenue of between $940 million and $950 million. The Islandia, N.Y.-based company previously had forecast earnings of 9 cents to 10 cents per share for the quarter.

"Our results for the quarter were not in line with our expectations. However, CA is a company undergoing a transformation," CA President and CEO John Swainson said. "I am confident that the changes we have made to transform CA will have a beneficial impact in the coming year."

Latency in transitioning revenue from companies CA recently acquired, slower-than-expected bookings and a rise in sales expenses such as commissions contributed to the disappointing earnings, according to CA.

CA plans to report final results for the quarter after the market close on May 30.

CA’s stock price was down 2.94 percent, trading at $24.76 a share, as of early afternoon on Tuesday.