Adobe's pressure on online revenue is shared

(Reuters) – Adobe Systems Inc. on Thursday forecast aggregate revenue in line with analysts' estimates after exceeding expectations for nine consecutive quarters, sending its shares down 1.7% after the bell.

The company's estimate of the 22% increase in revenue in its digital media unit for the current quarter also suggests a slowdown in growth. The company, which hosts its Creative Cloud suite, has consistently recorded revenue growth of about 28% over the past four quarters.

"As we continue to migrate activities to subscriptions, we do not expect significant Acrobat perpetual licenses for the fourth quarter, which is reflected in our year-over-year revenue growth goal," said the manufacturer. in a statement. reut.rs/2NfZnnG

The company has taken a big step towards a subscription-based model of traditional licensed software to take advantage of a more predictable source of recurring revenue.

Adobe expects revenue of $ 2.42 billion for the current quarter and adjusted earnings of $ 1.87 per share, only 1 cent higher than analysts' estimates.

Net income was $ 666.3 million, or $ 1.34 per share, for the quarter ended August 31, compared with $ 419.6 million, or 84 cents a share, a year ago.

Excluding some items, Adobe generated 1.73 euro per share, while revenue rose 24.4% to 2.29 billion.

According to Thomson Reuters I / B / E / S, analysts expected on average earnings of $ 1.69 per share and revenues of $ 2.25 billion.

Reuters said earlier in the day that Adobe was negotiating to acquire Marketo Inc., a private cloud-based marketing software company, an initiative that would complement Adobe's marketing activities and help it take over larger companies like Microsoft Corp.

Shares of the San Jose, California-based company, which gained 53% this year, edged down to $ 268.