Shutterfly posts narrower Q1 loss, sales beat; shares rally 9%

Shares of Shutterfly Inc. SFLY, +0.78%rose more than 9% late Tuesday after the digital printing and image-publishing company reported a narrower-than-expected first-quarter loss and sales that were above Wall Street expectations. Shutterfly said it lost $27.2 million, or 83 cents a share, in the quarter, compared with a loss of $33.

2 million, or 98 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Sales rose 4% to $199.7 million, from $192 million a year ago, the company said. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected a loss of 95 cents a share on sales of $192 million. The acquisition of school-photo provider Lifetouch will "significantly increase the company's overall profitability," Shutterfly said. Shutterfly updated its guidance as well, saying it expects revenue between $2.01 billion and $2.06 billion in 2018, and adjusted EPS between $2.83 and $3.28. Shutterfly shares ended the regular trading day up 0.8%.