Dolby Labs Jumps on Microsoft Deal, Earnings (DLB, MSFT)
May 4, 2012 by Paul Ausick
A company best known for its audio technology, Dolby Laboratories Inc. (NYSE: DLB) has signed an agreement with Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) to incorporate Dolby Digital Plus technology in the Windows 8 operating system for both tablets and PCs.
According to the announcement, developers will now be able to use the Dolby technology through:
Windows 8 APIs in desktop and Metro-style apps, including those developed for x86 and ARM architectures. Dolby Digital Plus 5.1-channel decoding and Dolby Digital two-channel encoding will be supported in all PCs and tablets licensed to run Windows 8, Windows 8 Pro, and Windows RT editions.
Dolby also announced second fiscal quarter results that beat estimates. Adjusted EPS came in at $0.81 versus a consensus estimate of $0.75 and revenues of $260.3 million topped the consensus estimate of $253.5 million. The company also guide fiscal year EPS to $2.38-$2.62, up from its earlier guidance of $2.31-$2.61. The consensus estimate for full-year EPS had been $2.57. Dolby noted that the Microsoft deal will have no impact on fiscal 2012 results because the Windows 8 is not expected to ship before Dolby’s 2013 fiscal year begins in October.
Dolby’s shares are up about 18.5% at $44.58 in a 52-week range of $25.70-$50.22.
Paul Ausick
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