GoPro Results Miss Expectations; Shares Slide

GoPro Inc. on Wednesday posted revenue and profit that fell short of Wall Street expectations, adding to concerns over the wearable-camera company's business.

Shares of the company tumbled 13% in after-hours trading.

GoPro's shares have been battered since August amid concerns that the wearable-camera market is drying up. Shares closed at $30.30 a share on Wednesday, down 52% this year.

In the period ended Sept. 30, GoPro's revenue grew 43% to $400.3 million, but it fell well short of the $433.6 million in revenue analysts had expected, according to Thomson Reuters.

In a statement, Chief Executive Nicholas Woodman said "business in the third quarter was clearly more difficult than anticipated."

Sales growth in the quarter was likely damped by the timing of product releases. Last year, GoPro debuted new cameras in the third quarter; this year, it introduced new devices in the second quarter.

The San Mateo, Calif., company is also facing new competition from traditional camera makers like Sony Corp. and new entrants such as Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi Corp. In response, GoPro is attempting to diversify, including plans to soon release a consumer drone.

In all, GoPro posted a profit of $18.8 million, or 13 cents a share, up from $14.6 million, or 10 cents a share, a year earlier.

Excluding special items, per-share earnings were 25 cents. Analysts had forecast 29 cents a share in earnings.

The company also said Wednesday that its board has authorized a $300 million share buyback program to begin in the current quarter.

Write to Chelsey Dulaney at [e-mail]

Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 28, 2015 17:05 ET (21:05 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2015 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.