Autodesk revenue beats estimates as subscriptions jump

(Reuters) - Autodesk Inc (ADSK.O) reported a better-than-expected quarterly revenue as the company's switch to a subscription-based model for its computer-aided design software paid off.

The company's shares rose 3.3 pct in after-market trading on Thursday.

Total subscriptions rose by about 385,000 to 2.23 million in the year ended Jan. 31, higher than the 325,000-375,000 net subscribers the company expected in November.

The company expects to transition majority of its business to subscription offering over the next two years, Chief Executive Carl Bass said in a statement.

Autodesk said earlier this month that its desktop software products will be available only by subscription from next February.

The company's flagship AutoCAD software is used by construction, engineering and manufacturing companies to design and simulate real-world performance of their products.

Revenue from subscription rose 16.7 percent to $664.6 million in the fourth quarter.

Autodesk forecast current-quarter adjusted profit of 25 cents-30 cents per share and revenue of between $625 million-$645 million.

Analysts on average were expecting a profit of 32 cents on revenue of $627.5 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Net income fell to $11.5 million, or 5 cents per share, in the fourth quarter, from $53.9 million, or 23 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, the company earned 25 cents per share.

Total revenue rose 13.3 percent to $664.6 million.

Analysts on average had expected a profit of 24 cents per share on revenue of $650.5 million.

The San Rafael, California-based company’s shares closed at $61.01 on the Nasdaq.

(Reporting by Kshitiz Goliya in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Sriraj Kalluvila)