Investing.com -- Shares in Fitbit Inc (N:FIT) plummeted 13% in after-hours trading in spite of stellar results last quarter, as the San Francisco-based manufacturer of wearable devices attempt to downplay significant concerns with the launch of its new smartwatch.
During the fourth quarter of 2015, Fitbit finished with revenues of $711.6 million, almost doubling its sales from the same period a year earlier. The company also reported earnings of $64.2 million, after selling more than eight million fitness tracking devices during the quarter. By comparison, Fitbit reported net profits of $39.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2014, after shipping approximately 5.3 million devices.
On an adjusted earnings per share basis, excluding one-time items, Fitbit's profits increased to 0.35, up from 0.21 a year ago. Fitbit projected adjusted per share earnings between 0.20 and 0.25 on revenue between $620 and $650 million.
“We believe we are beginning 2016 with strong customer engagement and retention, an accelerating pace of innovation and competitive differentiation, and a foundation of significant revenue growth and profitability in 2015,” said James Park, Fitbit co-founder and CEO. “I am very optimistic about our growth opportunities and long-term vision as a broader digital health company.
Investors, however, continue to express worries related to Fitbit's long-term growth potential, ahead of its rollout of its Blaze smartwatch next month. At $200 per unit, the watch is considerably less expensive than Apple (O:AAPL)'s $350 iWatch sport and Android's Moto 360. Fitbit attempted to allay such concerns by informing shareholders on Monday that the current total of pre-orders has already eclipsed company projections. Last week, pre-order volume for the Blaze ranked second in Amazon (O:AMZN)'s list of top selling smartwatches over $100, Fitbit said in a statement.
Moving forward, Fitbit said it expects per share earnings to range between flat and 0.02 in the first quarter with revenues in between $420 and $440 million. On an annual basis, the company anticipates reporting per share earnings in between 1.08 and 1.20 on revenues in between $2.4 and $2.5 billion. Analysts, meanwhile, expect the company to report earnings of 0.23 per share for the second quarter on revenues of $484.6 million.
Fitbit shares plunged 2.28 or 13.83% in after-hours trading.