In other financial news…(2)

Graphics chipmaker Nvidia topped analysts’ expectations by a penny, while fiber-optic maker Ciena Corp. posted a wider second-quarter loss.
Nvidia
Nvidia’s first-quarter revenue reached $582.9 million. In Q1 2002, the company reported earnings of $26.7 million, or 16 cents a share, on revenue of about $240.9 million. Actual net income for the first quarter of fiscal 2003 was $83.2 million, or 47 cents per diluted share, compared to actual net income of $26.7 million, or $0.16 per diluted share, for the first quarter of fiscal 2002. Analysts were expecting the company to earn 46 cents a share, according to First Call.
As of 11:43 a.m. EDT, Nvidia shares were down $2.99 to $35.06.
Last month, Nvidia pledged support for “Corona,” the code-name for Microsoft’s next-generation streaming media platform. Designed for the Windows XP operating system, Corona can playback video at “quality far beyond what is possible on many high-end televisions today,” Microsoft said at the time of the announcement.
Ciena Corp.
Ciena’s stock price teetered near or just below its 52 week low of $6 a share at various points in mid-day trading action, after the company posted a second quarter loss of $612.2 million, or $1.86 a share. The loss, which increased substantially over the year-earlier loss of $50.7 million, or 17 cents a share, was attributed to deep charges related to job cuts and excess inventory costs. During the quarter, the company took a restructuring charge of $121.4 million.
Revenue plunged 80 percent from $425.4 million in Q2 2001 to $87.1 million.
Ciena says it is “optimistic” that the industry will soon hit bottom, although it did not forecast when that might happen. Looking ahead to Q3, the company expects sales to be flat or down compared to the second quarter.