Ariba Sells Off; FY Q4 Light; Q1 Guidance Disappoints

Ariba (ARBA) shares are down sharply this morning after the company posted results for its fiscal fourth quarter ended September 30 that were short of expectations. Guidance for Q1 also came up short of Street forecasts.

For Q4, the spend management software company posted non-GAAP revenue of $86.4 million, and non-GAAP profits of 15 cents a share. The Street had expected $87.5 million and 17 cents.

On its post-earnings conference call, the company repeated that it expects to earn 70 cents a share in the September 2009 fiscal year, with revenue of $355 million to $370 million.

For Q1, the company sees non-GAAP revenue of $86 million to $89 million, with profits of 12-14 cents a share. The company says EPS will be trimmed by 2 cents for investments in its network business. The Street had been looking for $89.3 million and 16 cents.

ARBA today is down $1.19, or 11.3%, to