What National Instruments’ new earnings report means

Austin-based National Instruments reports first-quarter financials.

In early April, Austin-based technology company National Instruments Corp. had warned investors that its first-quarter earnings were going to be weaker than expected.

On Thursday, the company reported its full first-quarter financial data, and the numbers weren’t as bad as some on Wall Street were expecting.

National Instruments makes testing and measurement hardware and software systems used by scientists and engineers worldwide. It employs 2,700 workers in Austin.

For the quarter ended March 31, National Instruments had net income of $9.3 million, or 7 cents per share. Adjusted for certain items, the company’s earnings were 16 cents per share. Analysts had predicted adjusted earnings of 15 cents per share.

The company reported revenue of $287 million, down 1 percent year-over-year.

For the current quarter, National Instruments said it expects its per-share earnings to range from 16 cents to 32 cents. The company said it expects revenue in the range of $287 million to $323 million for the fiscal second quarter. Analysts surveyed

by Zacks had expected revenue of $305.1 million.

National Instruments blamed its slowdown on “further weakness in the industrial economy” in the first quarter and noted “a marked slowdown in our semiconductor accounts that are part of the wireless supply chain.”

Company executives, however, said National Instruments is taking steps to weather the slowdown. “In light of the uncertain outlook for the industrial economy, we plan to leverage the strategic investments we have already made while managing expenses carefully,” Alex Davern, National Instruments chief financial officer, said in a written state- ment.

National Instruments shares have decreased slightly more than 3 percent since the beginning of the year. At the close of trading on Thursday, shares were at $27.75, a fall of 13 percent in the past 12 months.

‘We plan to leverage the strategic investments we have already made while managing expenses carefully.’ Alex Davern National Instruments chief financial officer