Bottomline Assures Resilience Despite Slight Underperformance

B2B payments company Bottomline Technologies released its quarterly report for the second quarter of the 2016 fiscal year on Thursday (Jan. 28), and while the figures were slightly short of expectations, the company says it has a plan for success.

The firm, which provides payment, digital banking and invoicing services for corporations and financial institutions, scored a profit, though the figures were a more than 5 percent decrease from Q2 the year before, reports said.

Earnings hit $14.64 million — also a tad lower than earnings reached in the same period the prior year. Sales reached $86 million, similarly missing targets.

Despite the slight underperformance, President and Chief Executive Officer Rob Eberle remained optimistic during the company’s earnings call late last week.

“We are delighted with the results for the second quarter and our progress against our strategic plan,” he said, pointing to a strategic partnership with Visa that helped to propel the company’s growth.

The executive also pointed to key acquisitions the company has made in an effort to drive sales and see a return on those investments. Those strategic purchases, Eberle said, will impact the company’s 2017 guidance.

“We have a strategic plan, we are performing well against it and we are confident we will continue to grow shareholder value,” Eberle added in a statement.

Among the company’s highlights for the quarter included the launch of a collaboration with Fifth Third Bank, a partnership announced in October that sees Bottomline providing digital payments capabilities for Fifth Third in an effort to offer those services to the bank’s corporate customers.

Also noted in the highlights was the addition of 16 new institutions onboarding to Bottomline’s Paymode-X platform, which helps banks and other institutions integrate cloud-based payment solutions into their services for clients.