06:25 AM EDT, 08/21/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Keysight Technologies ( KEYS ) shares jumped Wednesday after logging better-than-expected fiscal third-quarter results, while Chief Executive Satish Dhanasekaran forecast second-half orders to be higher than the previous six-month period.

The electronics test and measurement equipment manufacturer anticipates adjusted earnings between $1.53 and $1.59 per share for the ongoing quarter and revenue to be in a range of $1.25 billion to $1.27 billion, it said late Tuesday. The current consensus on Capital IQ is for normalized EPS of $1.56 and revenue of $1.26 billion.

"In a mixed demand environment, we continue to see stability and pockets of growth, particularly in commercial communications," Dhanasekaran said on an earnings call, according to a Capital IQ transcript. "The funnel of opportunities supports our outlook for second-half orders to be above first-half orders followed by a more gradual recovery in 2025, barring any further macroeconomic degradation."

For the three months through July, adjusted EPS dropped to $1.57 from $2.19 the year before, but surpassed the Street's view for $1.35. Revenue fell to $1.22 billion from $1.38 billion, but topped analysts' $1.19 billion estimate. The stock spiked 11% in premarket activity.

Orders edged up to $1.25 billion from $1.24 billion in the prior-year quarter, "slightly above" expectations and growing in the low-single-digits on a sequential basis, Dhanasekaran said on the call. "For the second consecutive quarter, we saw relative stability in both orders and revenue," the CEO told analysts.

Revenue in the electronic industrial solutions group segment sunk 20% to $370 million as customer spending and market conditions "remain muted," Dhanasekaran said. Still, the company saw "relative stability" in orders sequentially, he said. Communications solutions decreased 8% to $847 million, reflecting a 6% decline in commercial communications and a 10% drop in the aerospace, defense and government business, the company said.

"We're well positioned to capitalize on technology inflections ahead of us and remain laser-focused on value creation for both customers and shareholders," Dhanasekaran said on the call.

Price: 154.06, Change: +15.49, Percent Change: +11.18