iRobot Corp (NASDAQ: IRBT) rallied Thursday a day after reporting fourth-quarter results that beat Wall Street estimates.
For the three months ended December 29, the Bedford, Massachusetts, company reported earnings per share of $0.88 on record revenue of $385 million. The average estimate of analysts was for earnings per share of $0.50 on expected revenue of $381.26 million.
The stock climbed 11% to $99.95 in Thursday's premarket trading.
READ: iRobot stock plunges despite big 3Q earnings and revenue beats
The company said demand for its Roomba i7 and i7+ robots drove holiday sales in the US. Overseas, sales in Japan were driven by demand supported by its sales and marketing programs.
For 2019, the company expects revenue of $1.28 billion to $1.31 billion, which would represent year-over-year growth of 17% to 20%.
"We are very excited about our 2018 performance and the opportunities that lie ahead,” Chairman and CEO Colin Angle said in a statement.
iRobot is a component of the ROBO Global Robotics and Automation Index, the world’s first benchmark index tracking global companies focusing on robotics, automation and artificial intelligence.
The ROBO Global Robotics and Automation Index ETF (NYSEARCA:ROBO) edged up 0.2% to $37.13 at Wednesday’s close.
–This story was updated to provide the latest share prices–
Contact Dennis Fitzgerald at dennis@proactiveinvesors.com