Broadcom stock rallies 5% on earnings beat, $10 billion share-buyback program

The company reported fiscal fourth-quarter net income of $1.91 billion, or $4.45 a share, compared with $1.25 billion, or $2.93 a share, in the year-ago period. Adjusted earnings, which exclude stock-based compensation and other items, were $7.81 a share, compared with $6.35 a share in the year-ago quarter.

Revenue rose to $7.41 billion from $6.47 billion in the year-ago quarter. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected earnings of $7.74 a share on revenue of $7.36 billion, based on Broadcom’s forecast revenue of about $7.35 billion.

The company reported a 76% gain in chip sales to $5.63 billion from the year-ago period, and a 24% rise in infrastructure software sales to $1.77 billion. Analysts had forecast chip sales of $5.6 billion and infrastructure software sales of $1.73 billion.

“Broadcom concluded the year with record fourth-quarter results driven by a rebound in enterprise, and continued strength from cloud and service provider demand,” said Hock Tan, Broadcom president and chief executive, in a statement. “Our infrastructure software growth continues to be steady with our focus on strategic customers.”

Broadcom forecast revenue of about $7.6 billion for the fiscal first quarter, while analysts had estimated revenue of $7.24 billion.

Broadcom also said its board authorized a new $10 billion share-buyback program that is effective until the end of 2022. The company reported cash and cash equivalents of $12.16 billion at the end of its fiscal year.

Over the past 12 months, shares of Broadcom have gained 40%. In comparison, the S&P 500 index  SPX, -0.72% has advanced 27%, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index  COMP, -1.71%  has risen 26%, while the PHLX Semiconductor Index  SOX, -2.14% has grown 42% over that time.