Data storage company EMC today posted its third consecutive quarterly loss.
EMC, employs 1,400 people in Cork, had a net loss of $76.9 million, or 3 cents a share, compared with a profit last year of $398.8 million, or 18 cents a share.
The company's revenues have tumbled due to a price war with rivals and less customers for its machines that store computer network traffic.
Analysts were looking for EMC to lose 2 cents to 6 cents per share, with a consensus loss estimate of 5 cents, according to Thomson Financial/First Call.
Storage systems sales fell sharply in the first quarter to $741.6 million, compared with $1.6 billion in the year-ago quarter. Software sales also dropped sharply from year-ago levels to $282.3 million from $467.5 million.
Storage services increased to $238.5 million from $232 million.
EMC said it continues to cut costs as it works to bring expenses in line with falling revenue. The company said it has lowered its quarterly break-even level by over $200 million over the past nine months.
EMC shares closed down 52 cents, or 4.76 per cent, to $10.40 yesterday on the New York Stock Exchange. The stock is off 23 per cent this year, underperforming the 2 per cent decline on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index.