Active Power tops earnings forecasts

Austin company’s firstquarter revenue jumps 20 percent over 2014.

Austin-based technology company Active Power on Tuesday reported first-quarter earnings that topped Wall Street expectations.

Active Power, which produces backup power systems, had a net loss of $1.6 million, or 7 cents per share, for the quarter ended March 31. That compared with a net loss of $3.9 million, or 19 cents per share, in the same quarter of 2014. The net loss of 7 cents per share beat the forecast of Wall Street analysts, who were projecting a net loss of 15 cents per share.

Active Power’s revenue was $13.1 million for the quarter, a 20 percent jump over the first quarter of 2014, the company said.

The company said it lowered operating expenses in the first quarter to $5.8 mil- lion, compared with $6.6 million in the same quarter last year. The company attributed the lower operating expenses to “lower payroll expense, severance costs, legal fees and reduced product development fees.”

Active Power’s shares closed Tuesday up 1.7 percent, or 4 cents, to $2.42.

“Our results for the first quarter of 2015 are reflective of our strategy to increase bookings and backlog, improve operational efficiencies and control cost,” Mark Ascolese, Active Power president and CEO, said in a written statement. “We improved bookings on both a sequential and annual basis and reduced our operating expenses. … We will continue to focus on generating consistency in bookings and order flow and building a sizable backlog as we move through 2015.”

In March, Active Power said it reached an agreement to settle shareholder lawsuits relat-

ing to the company’s former relationship with a Chinese distributor. The deal would result in a payment of $1.5 million, along with changes in the company’s corporate governance. The settlement is awaiting approval in Travis County District Court.

Active Power operates a manufacturing facility off West Braker Lane, where workers assemble backup power systems. The systems, which are used by customers such as hospitals, data centers and government agencies that need an uninterrupt- ed power supply, employ a flywheel-based technology that stores energy kinetically.

The company has about 230 employees worldwide, with 150 of those in Austin. For 2014, the company had revenue of $49.1 million compared with revenue of $61.7 million in 2013.