-=Yext (YEXT) reported earnings on Wed 6 March 19 (a/h)

Yext beats by $0.06, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS in-line, revs in-line; guides FY20 EPS below consensus, revs in-line

• Reports Q4 (Jan) loss of $0.03 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.06 better than the S&P Capital IQ Consensus of ($0.09); revenues rose 32.9% year/year to $63.8 mln vs the $62.77 mln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.
  • Gross margin of 75.5% as compared to the 74.6% reported in fourth quarter fiscal 2018.
  • RPO as of January 31, 2019 was $262.0 million, with $242.9 million expected to be recognized over the next 24 months and the balance to be recognized thereafter.
• Co issues in-line guidance for Q1, sees EPS of ($0.11)-($0.09), excluding non-recurring items, vs. ($0.10) S&P Capital IQ Consensus; sees Q1 revs of $66-67 mln vs. $67.04 mln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.
• Co issues guidance for FY20, sees EPS of ($0.44)-($0.40), excluding non-recurring items, vs. ($0.38) S&P Capital IQ Consensus; sees FY20 revs of $295-300 mln vs. $297.61 mln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.

March 6 (Reuters) - Yext Inc on Wednesday gave a first-quarter revenue forecast that missed some analysts' expectations, sending shares down slightly in late trading despite beating expectations for the just-ended fiscal year.

New York-based Yext makes software to help companies such as restaurant chains ensure that data including business hours and menu items are accurate on systems like Apple Inc's Maps and voice assistants from Amazon.com Inc and Alphabet Inc.

For its current fiscal first quarter, Yext forecast sales of $66 million to $67 million with a midpoint below analysts' average estimates of $67.0 million, according to IBES data from Refinitiv. Yext said it expects between $295 million and $300 million for its fiscal 2020, with the midpoint slightly below analyst expectations of $297.6 million, according to Refinitiv data.

Shares dropped 1.6 percent to $20.05 in late trading.

For its fiscal year ended Jan. 31, Yext reported revenue of $228.8 million, above analyst expectations of $227.7 million, according to Refinitiv data. The company lost 40 cents per share excluding items, better than analyst expectations of a 42-cent-per-share loss.

The company forecasted the net losses to continue for its fiscal 2020, but Chief Executive Howard Lerman said the company generated $30.8 million in free cash flow in its fiscal fourth quarter of 2019.

Yext's biggest cost is senior sales people who can win deals with its large customers such as Arby's or T-Mobile, and Lerman said the company plans to continue to invest in its sales force.