Cloudflare Crashes As Macro Weighs on Q1 Results

Cloudflare (NET:US) delivered a disappointing set of Q1 results and outlook figures to send its shares sharply lower on Friday.

The cybersecurity-focused software company expects the macro-induced slowdown to persist throughout 2023 as it was forced to slash the full-year revenue forecast. 

“Increasing macroeconomic uncertainty over the course of the first quarter resulted in a material lengthening of sales cycles and a significant backend-weighting of linearity,” said Thomas Seifert, CFO of Cloudflare.

For the quarter that ended on March 31, Cloudflare reported EPS of $0.08 on revenue of $290.2 million. Sales grew 37% and came in line with the analyst expectations. 

For the current quarter, Cloudflare said it expects to record revenue of $305 - $306 million, below the $320 million expected. Adjusted operating income is seen at $14.5 milion, or at $0.075 per share.

The new FY forecast calls for revenue of $1.28 billion, down from the prior $1.33 - $1.34 billion forecast and below the expected $1.34 billion. On a more positive note, the FY profit range is boosted to $0.34 - $0.35 from the previous $0.15 - $0.16.

“Despite the continued reacceleration of our new pipeline generation and our sustained high win rates and renewal rates during the first quarter, our guidance assumes these external headwinds will persist through the end of the fiscal year,” Seifert added.

Congressman Ro Khanna was actively trading NET shares throughout 2022. Most recently, he reported the sale of NET stock that took place on December 06 when it closed at $43.60, around the same levels as seen during Friday’s trading session.