Hypercom Corp.'s preview of its fourth-quarter earnings raised fears about the viability of its deal to sell itself to VeriFone Systems Inc. in the second half of the year.
In a note to investors, Wedbush Morgan analyst Gil B. Luria suggested merchants might stop buying Hypercom terminals because of the deal and instead start buying from VeriFone or Ingenico SA. That influx of business could cause VeriFone, of San Jose, Calif., to forgo the expense of buying the Scottsdale, Ariz., vendor altogether.
Luria wrote that the pending transaction could further be affected by increased competition from larger competitors, market acceptance of new products and distractions from other deals.
Hypercom said Wednesday that its preliminary fourth-quarter net revenue was up 19%, to $140 million, from a year earlier. It said it plans to announce final results for the quarter on March 2, the day after VeriFone is scheduled to report. In early trading Thursday, Hypercom's shares were down 0.27%, to $10.97, but they recovered by midday.
