Juniper Networks revenue misses estimates on weak client spending
(Reuters) - Juniper Networks, which is being acquired by Hewlett Packard Enterprise, reported fourth-quarter revenue below market expectations on Tuesday, hurt by weak spending by its cloud computing and enterprise clients.
The Sunnyvale California-based company reported revenue of $1.37 billion compared to expectations of $1.41 billion, according to LSEG data.
Competition from Cisco Systems and Arista Networks and weak spending by wireless carriers and cable operators grappling with an uncertain economy have hurt demand for Juniper's cloud computing and network security services.
However, revenue from Mist and other products attached to the Mist Cloud grew nearly 40% from a year ago.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise entered into the $14 billion deal for Juniper earlier this month in a bid to spruce up its own AI offerings. The deal expected to close between 2024 end and early 2025.
HPE, which has been grappling with sluggish demand in its traditional server business, is expected to benefit from Juniper's network security and AI-enabled enterprise networking operations.
Juniper reported a profit of 61 cents per share, missing analysts' average estimate of 64 cents.
Its share price have declined more than 17% in 2022 and 2023 as high inflation levels prompted clients to cut back on tech spending after shoring up investment during the pandemic.
(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala and Seher Dareen in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)