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VeriSign edges estimates
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April 19, 2000: 10:43 p.m. ET
Internet security services company turns profit on strong revenue growth
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Internet security firm VeriSign, Inc. Thursday reported first-quarter earnings that more than doubled results from a year earlier due to strong unit and revenue growth and its pending acquisition of Internet domain name provider Network Solutions.
Excluding one-time items, the nation's leading provider of Internet trust services, including e-commerce and e-mail security said pro forma net income for the three months ended March 31 totaled $2.2 million, or two cents per share, up from a net loss of $2.0 million or two cents a share a year earlier.
Revenue rose 119% to $34.1 million from $15.6 million for the same three months in 1999.
A consensus of Wall Street analysts surveyed by earnings tracker First Call/Thompson Financial had forecast a profit for VeriSign, Inc (VRSN: Research, Estimates). of a penny a share.
 VeriSign had a net loss for the quarter of $26.2 million, or 24 cents per diluted share compared to the previous year. The net loss includes one-time expenses from the $61 million purchase of Thawte Consulting, Inc. and Signio, Inc. and the gain of $32.6 million from the sale of Keynote Systems, Inc.
"The first quarter of 2000 was without a doubt the most active in VeriSign's history," said Stratton Slavos, president and CEO of VeriSign. "The outlook for the rest of the year is equally exciting as we complete the acquisition of Network Solutions and continue the roll out of our B2B and wireless trust services."
Leading the company's revenue growth was a spike in sales of authentication services, which climbed 122% over the year-ago quarter and 41% over the prior quarter. New clients signed up in the quarter included Motorola, McDonald's and Ameritrade.
VeriSign, which reported after the bell, closed down 8-19/32 to 130-29/32 Wednesday on Nasdaq. 
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