Zoom Video Communications' share price fell late Monday following the release of the company's fiscal third quarter earnings and forecast.
While the company's earnings for the period did exceed analysts' estimates, investors were likely disappointed at its tapering rate of growth.
Zoom's share price opened at $484.45 per share Monday and closed lower at $478.36 per share at the end of the trading day.
The spread of the coronavirus pandemic earlier in the year resulted in a dramatic growth in Zoom's business. As the world shifted to working and studying from home after governments forced businesses and offices to shut down, Zoom gained millions of new users.
With its business booming and profits soaring, the company's share prices have increased by six folds - or approximately 591% - since the start of the year. Based on its latest quarterly earnings report, the company's exponential growth now seems to be slowing down.
For its fiscal third quarter ended Oct. 31, the company reported a 367% year-on-year growth in revenue to $777.2 million. This was slightly higher than the 355% year-on-year growth reported over the previous quarter.
Adjusted profits for the period reached 99 cents per share, higher than the 76 cents per share expected by analysts.
Gross margins declined from 67% to 66.7% for the period, with the company attributing a greater mix of free users as the reason for the decrease. Zoom's chief financial officer, Kelly Steckelberg, said during a webcast with analysts that the company's higher-than-usual reliance on public cloud services also impacted its gross margin.
According to its report, more than 80% of its revenue for the quarter had come from new customer subscriptions. The company saw significant growth in new users from markets such as the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. New users in the U.S. also continued to grow during the quarter.
For its fiscal fourth-quarter guidance, Zoom said that it expects to generate earnings of between 77 cents and 79 centers per share on revenues of between $806 million and $81 million. This implied a 329% year-on-year growth in the middle of the range.
Zoom said that it is confident of further growth in the coming years given its long-term plans for the business. The company said that it is seeing an increase in users for its premium Zoom Phone cloud-phone service in new markets. Zoom is also planning to launch several new services, including its OnZoom paid virtual events platform.
