Why Guidance Software Shares Got Crushed

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Guidance Software (NASDAQ: GUID  ) got crushed today -- down by 25% at the low -- after the company reported first-quarter results.

So what: Non-GAAP revenue in the first quarter came in at $27.2 million, which translated into a non-GAAP net loss of $0.15 per share. Both results were well below expectations, especially on the bottom line. Consensus estimates were calling for $30.2 million in sales and an adjusted net loss of just $0.03 per share.

Now what: CEO Victor Limongelli blamed the tough macroeconomic environment for the weakness in the first half of the year, but said the company was investing in research and development along with expanding sales and marketing. Guidance Software also revised guidance for 2013, with sales expected in the range of $133 million to $138 million, which should translate into an adjusted bottom line of a $0.20-per-share loss to breakeven. Benchmark downgraded the stock from "buy" to "hold" while assigning a $9 price target.

Interested in more info on Guidance Software? Add it to your watchlist by clicking here.

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Google Says Government Censorship Is Growing

Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) just released its latest data today on content removal requests it receives from governments -- and it doesn't look good. It said that such requests have increased from 1,811 requests for 18,070 pieces of content in the first half of 2012 to 2,285 requests on 24,179 pieces of content from July to Dec. 2012.

The company started its Transparency Report three years ago in an effort to show how governments across the globe try to censor data, and this latest release is the seventh.

Google said on its blog that, "As we've gathered and released more data over time, it's become increasingly clear that the scope of government attempts to censor content on Google services has grown. In more places than ever, we've been asked by governments to remove political content that people post on our services."

The company has made the online report available to everyone and said it has improved it to show whether or not YouTube videos were taken down because of community guidelines or local laws. The report now also tracks known disruptions to Google services in specific regions.

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