Citrix ups expectations after bumper results

Citrix posted strong results for the first quarter of fiscal 2011, leading the virtualisation player to up its forecast for the full year.

Having seen revenues increase 18 per cent over the first quarter of 2011 to hit $491 million (295 million), Citrix said it hoped to achieve between $2.14 and $2.17 billion revenue for the year. The previous forecast was between $2.10 billion and $2.14 billion.

Citrix also saw net income go up 55 per cent to $73.3 million, with $150.3 million in revenue coming in from product license sales, representing an increase of 22.5 per cent. License updates also rose 9.2 per cent.

Online services revenue shot up 17 per cent as the company saw successes with its GoTo range of collaboration products, whilst technical services revenue increased 44 per cent.

The company's previous quarterly results were positive too, with revenues climbing 17 per cent.

"Clearly, the industry is rapidly moving from "PC era" to "cloud era," where users are demanding - and CIOs are embracing - the consumerisation of IT," said Citrix chief executive (CEO) Mark Templeton.

"We're driving the transition with products that change how people collaborate, how desktops are delivered, and how delivery networks are built. This transformation is elevating our presence as a strategic vendor, increasing our engagement with C-level executives, and driving more interest in our virtual computing platform."

Rival VMware also posted strong results last week, ahead of Citrix's big Synergy event, which IT PRO will be reporting from between 25 and 28 May.