Avast reaffirms FY guidance as Q3 earnings, revenue rise

Cybersecurity provider Avast reaffirmed its full-year guidance on Wednesday as it posted a rise in third-quarter earnings and revenue.

For the period from 1 July to 30 September, adjusted revenue increased 8.6% on an organic basis to $226m, or 2.6% at actual rates. In the year to date, adjusted revenue was up 7.3% on an organic basis to $659.1m, or 1.9% higher at actual rates.

Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation rose 3.3% to $126m in the third quarter, and 2.5% in the year to date to $367.3m.

Avast said user and customer trends normalised with the easing of coronavirus lockdowns and that the consumer desktop business continued to perform well and in-line with pre-pandemic levels.

The company said that due to strong demand in the second quarter, revenue growth is expected to continue to outpace billings growth in the second half of the year. It reaffirmed its FY 2020 outlook for adjusted revenue to be at the upper end of mid-single digit growth, and a broadly flat adjusted EBITDA margin percentage.

Chief executive Ondrej Vlcek said: "As cyber-attackers have intensified their efforts through the pandemic to exploit digital vulnerabilities, Avast has been on the front line in protecting people's personal information and privacy.

"The value of Avast's services and technologies is reflected in the company's resilient financial performance, which underpins continued investment in our growth and focus on innovation."