Cognos Reports Higher Profits on Strong Software SalesCognos Reports Higher Profits on Strong Software Sales

Business-intelligence software maker Cognos Inc. on Wednesday reported a 52 percent increase in net income in the second quarter, due to a significant jump in license revenue.

The Canadian company said earnings for the fiscal quarter ended Aug. 31 were $27.6 million, or 30 cents a share, compared to $18.2 million, or 20 cents a share for the same period a year ago. Revenues were up 17 percent to $185.2 million from $158.2 million.

License revenue, a key performance indicator for software companies, rose 21 percent to $75.4 million from $62.2 million a year ago.

"The outlook for Cognos is excellent -- company fundamentals and our competitive position are the strongest ever," Rob Ashe, president and chief executive of Cognos, said in a statement.

Among the highlights for the quarter was the "outstanding customer response" to Cognos ReportNet, all-in-one reporting software that lets users create, modify and distribute invoices, financial statements or business reports, such as weekly sales and inventory, the company said. Cognos has sold more than $100 million in ReportNet licenses in the four quarters that the product has been generally available.

In addition, the company has signed 109 contracts valued at more than $200,000, and 655 contracts greater than $50,000. Those numbers were 22 percent higher than a year ago.

New customers for the quarter included Georgia Pacific, Johnson & Johnson, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Kaiser Permanente and the U.S. Air Force.

The company increased cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments by $24 million in the quarter to $440.4 million, including operating cash flow of $29.4 million.