PeopleSoft's 3Q Revenue Jumps 33 Percent

"What you see today in our financial results is in fact the beginning of the advantages of the acquisition," Conway said during a teleconference Thursday. "The benefits of combined product strength, industry strength, midmarket strength, international strength and financial strength are just beginning to show."

License and maintenance revenue also increased; license revenue jumped 32 percent to $160.5 million, up from $121.6 million a year earlier, while maintenance revenue rose 33 percent to $234.6 million, up from $176.9 million a year ago. Professional-services revenue was $229.1 million, compared with $172.7 million in the year-ago quarter.

The company did post a net loss of $7.3 million, compared with a profit of $44.5 million a year ago, because of charges associated with the J.D. Edwards acquisition.

CFO Kevin Parker said Oracle's hostile takeover bid also affected income. The company spent $18 million in the third quarter fighting off the bid and expects to spend as much as $5 million in the fourth quarter. Oracle is still pursuing its unsolicited $7.5 billion offer doggedly, and earlier this month it extended the bid's deadline.

The Oracle question has come up in every new deal, but "most customers feel that the saga is over, and they don't hold [Oracle's bid] in a particularly positive light," Conway said.

PeopleSoft said it expects even better numbers for its fourth quarter, citing improved technology spending and the J.D. Edwards merger. License revenue will come in between $170 million and $185 million, Parker said, and overall revenue will come in between $625 million and $640 million.

This story courtesy of Techweb.com.