Software vendor Intuit Inc. reported a 43 percent jump in subscribers to its QuickBooks Online accounting solution for the first quarter of its 2015 fiscal year, as well as 8 percent growth in overall revenue.
The company came out of Q1, which ended October 31, with 739,000 total QBO subscribers; 103,000 of those are outside the U.S., where growth in subscribers was even stronger at 170 percent for the quarter.
Total revenue for Q1 was $672 million, up 8 percent from the previous quarter.
“We began fiscal 2015 on a strong note,” said Intuit president and CEO Brad Smith, in a statement. “Our shift to the cloud continues to accelerate customer growth, led by QuickBooks Online. We’re also gearing up for tax season and are looking forward to our lineup of innovative solutions coming to market.”
Among the other information the company reported:
- Total revenue for its small-business segment grew 5 percent, with online ecosystem revenue up 30 percent, and QuickBooks desktop ecosystem revenue down 2 percent, which the company said was in line with expectations.
- Online payroll customers grew 24 percent.
- The company had a GAAP operating loss of $114 million in Q1 2015, versus $77 million in the year-ago period.
- In Q1, the company repurchased $114 million worth of shares.
- The board has approved a dividend of 25 cents a share for the second company, payable on January 20.
The company offered guidance for Q2, and reiterated its full-year guidance. It expects its revenue to decline between 3 and 5 percent over 2015, but to increase its number of QBO subscribers to between 925,000 and 950,000.
