FireEye reports record revenue, shows no signs of slowing down

FireEye has reported record billings and revenue for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2015, and says expanding platform adoption drove record annual operating cash flow, while recent iSight partners and Invotas acquisitions extended the company's addressable market.

"We made tremendous progress in 2015 on our multi-year journey to build the world's leading advanced threat management platform," says David DeWalt, FireEye chairman of the board and chief executive officer.

"On a year-over-year basis, we grew billings 35%, increased revenue 46%, added nearly 1,200 new customers, and expanded our international presence. We also made progress on our path to profitability, generating record annual cash flow from operations and improved operating margins," he says.

"These results reflect the powerful synergies that resulted from the combination of FireEye and Mandiant as we transformed our company and our industry.

"I am pleased to announce that, in recognition of the important role he has played in defining our intelligence-led security platform, Mandiant founder and FireEye president Kevin Mandia has been appointed to the FireEye board of directors," added DeWalt.

"Our recent acquisitions of iSIGHT and Invotas further extend our platform and expand our addressable market, and I'm looking forward to working with Kevin, the rest of the board, and the entire FireEye team as we continue to re-imagine cyber security," he says.

Overall, FireEye had a revenue of $184.8 million, an increase of 29% from the fourth quarter of 2014, and billings of $256.9 million, which was an increase of 21% from the fourth quarter of 2014.

The company had positive cash flow from operations of $9.4 million - an improvement of $9.7 million when compared to cash used by operations of $0.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2014.

Over 2015 as a whole, the company had revenue of $623.0 million, an increase of 46% from 2014, and billings of $797.4 million, an increase of 35% from 2014.

Current deferred revenue reached $305.2 million, an increase of $101.3 million, or 50%, from the end of 2014. Total deferred revenue reached $527.0 million, an increase of $174.5 million, or 49%, from the end of 2014.

Positive cash flow from operations of $37.0 million, an improvement of $168.3 million compared to cash used by operations of $131.3 million in 2014.

"We achieved a significant milestone on our path to profitability, with positive operating cash flow of $37.0 million for the year as billings growth exceeded growth in non-GAAP operating expenses," says Michael Berry, FireEye senior vice president and chief financial officer.

"Based on our 2016 guidance for billings and non-GAAP operating expenses, and anticipated capital expenditures, we expect to achieve positive operating and free cash flow for the year," he says.

FireEye estimates the company will continue to grow significantly throughout 2016.

Based on current market conditions and expectations, in the first quarter of 2016, FireEye expects total revenue in the range of $167 to $177 million.

Over the course of the whole year, the vendor expects total revenue to be in the range of $815 to $845 million, with positive cash flow from operations in the range of $70 to $80 million.

FireEye continues to enhance its Global Threat Management Platform and expand its addressable market with product introductions, enhancements and innovations.

Business highlights since the release of third quarter 2015 financial results on November 4, 2015, included:  

The acquisition of privately held iSIGHT Partners, the provider of cyber threat intelligence to global enterprises. The acquisition expands the FireEye threat intelligence infrastructure, with the addition of a global network of experts who monitor a broad range of threat actors and threat development in 17 countries and 29 languages.

The acquisition of privately held Invotas International Corporation, a provider of security automation and orchestration technology.  FireEye will leverage the technologies of Invotas Security Orchestrator to unify cyber attack detection results, threat intelligence and incident response elements of an organisation's security programme into a single console, giving enterprises the ability to respond more quickly to attacks through automation.

The expansion of the FireEye Global Threat Management Platform with the introduction of two new editions - FireEye Power and FireEye Essentials - which offer high quality FireEye threat detection and response solutions tailored for organisations at different stages in their security maturity.

FireEye continued to expand its market by offering the risk reduction benefits of its Global Threat Management Platform through new partnerships and strategic alliances, including:

Enhancements to the FireEye Fuel partner programme designed to increase partner go-to-market opportunities with the new Power and Essentials platform editions and help partners expand their security practices with new products, services and threat intelligence offerings.

A strategic partnership with technology-driven engineering firm Parsons to provide customers with enhanced protection for industrial control systems (ICS) through advanced technologies, intelligence and services aimed at reducing risk and strengthening overall security postures.

Kevin Mandia Appointed to FireEye Board of Directors. FireEye announced the appointment of Kevin Mandia, FireEye president and founder of Mandiant, to the FireEye board of directors, effective February 9, 2016. Mandia joined FireEye when FireEye acquired Mandiant, a leading provider of advanced endpoint security products and security incident response management solutions, in December 2013.

Enrique Salem Appointed as Lead Independent Director. FireEye also announced the appointment of Enrique Salem, an independent director of the company, to serve as the lead independent director of the FireEye board of directors. A FireEye board member since February 2013, Salem is a managing director of Bain Capital Ventures and was previously president, chief executive officer and a director of Symantec Corporation.