Adobe announced 1st quarter results for the quarter ending on March 5th, 1999. For the first time in many quarters, Mac software gained marketshare from PC software sales. Last quarter saw Adobe's Mac sales rise, but still lose marketshare against higher rising Windows sales. This quarter sees a reverse of this trend. According to Adobe:
The company said first-quarter profit rose to $38.3 million, or 60 cents a share, for the quarter ended March 5 from $26.7 million, or 38 cents, in the year-ago quarter. Adobe beat analysts' forecasts of 52 cents a share, as revenues rose to $226.9 million from $197.8 million a year earlier.
Revenue from its Acrobat software rose 38 percent from a year ago while sales of software running on Apple Computer Inc. Macintosh computers ticked up to 43 percent from 41 percent a year ago. Sales of software running on Microsoft Corp.'s Windows operating system was 57 percent, down from 59 percent.
Revenues from application products -- its software -- rose to $188.8 million from $156 million a year ago, up 25.9 percent after deducting revenue from divested businesses.
This makes two strong quarters in a row for the maker of some of the most popular graphics apps in the business.
The Mac Observer Spin: Wooooooohoooooooo!!! We have been waiting for this particular sign for a long time. Adobe's sales rose and Mac software sales rose at a higher pace than its Windows's counterparts! Adobe has long showed signs of wavering and decreasing Mac support, but that has been changing during the last 6-9 months as Apple's fortunes started to change for the better.
For many years, since the introduction of Windows 95 and the major porting effort to bring Photoshop, Illustrator, and most of the rest of Adobe's portfolio to Windows, Mac sales at the company have declined in terms of both actual sales and marketshare versus Windows marketshare. Now it is on the way back up with this vitally important company to the Mac.
One quarter does not a trend make, but we will look forward to Adobe's announcements for next quarter!
Adobe
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