LivePerson (NASDAQ: LPSN) reported Q4 EPS of ($0.07), $0.01 better than the analyst estimate of ($0.08). Revenue for the quarter came in at $79.1 million versus the consensus estimate of $78.91 million.

On Mr. Greiner's decision, Robert LoCascio, LivePerson's CEO, stated, "I would like to thank Chris for all his contributions to LivePerson and wish him the best in his career. Chris joined LivePerson in early 2018, and played a key role in our transition to high growth. He helped build a data-driven, process-oriented, financial operation that aided decision making and the execution of our strategy. He also led a successful capital raise that gave us the balance sheet to fund our growth investments. LivePerson is progressing along the path to becoming what I call an outstanding company, one that has high growth, high margins and a strong culture that drives the business."

"John is the ideal candidate to help us on the next leg of this journey, possessing a rare combination of business leadership, financial acumen, and data science expertise. Under John's direction, we will apply our vision for AI and automation to LivePerson's corporate operations, creating a "data democracy" that makes business information available anytime, anywhere, for everybody. We will deliver strong growth and create meaningful operating leverage by automating the repetitive, low-value, transactional work of our employees, freeing them to focus on strategy and innovation."

"I want to emphasize my strong alignment with this decision," stated Chris Greiner. "John's value to the finance department and the broader company has already been proven in his first few months. Data science and engineering are going to transform the finance function, and John's vision for these capabilities aligns perfectly with LivePerson's AI and automation strategy. I want to personally thank Rob, the board, senior management and my finance and HR team for the opportunity to have played a leadership role in the scaling and expansion of the company. I am excited to partner with John over a period of transition to ensure his ramping is smooth and successful."

John Collins added, I'm grateful to Rob and Chris for the opportunity and for embracing my vision to deploy automation and machine learning to transform the finance organization and its impact on the business. Considering LivePerson's size and near-term market opportunities, now is the optimal time to invest in the model-driven processes that will enhance operational leverage and growth."

"In 2019, we accomplished our initial mission, disrupting the voice contact center by enabling hundreds of millions of consumers to connect to their favorite brands by messaging, just like they do with friends, family and peers," said CEO, Robert LoCascio. "We had the vision to build the right platform at the right time, and we executed on our strategy, accelerating revenue growth to 20% in the fourth quarter. Now, we are advancing the next step in our mission, bringing a trusted Conversational AI to the world that will transform how consumers seek information and make purchases, and disrupt traditional websites, advertising, content creation and, of course, traditional contact center."

"I am thrilled with how we closed out 2019," added CFO, Chris Greiner, "especially the acceleration to 20% revenue growth in our B2B segment in the fourth quarter. The investments we made to nearly double our sales capacity and fill the whitespace in our platform are already bearing fruit, positioning LivePerson to meet its goals of at least 20% growth in 2020, and increasing our confidence in acceleration toward at least 25% growth in 2021. This is the perfect time to turn our expertise in AI and automation internally. With our efforts underway, we are aiming to hold headcount essentially flat in 2020, driving improved profitability and cash flow, even while reinvesting in growth and innovation."

GUIDANCE:

LivePerson sees Q1 2020 revenue of $77.5-78.5 million, versus the consensus of $80.42 million.

LivePerson sees FY2020 revenue of $350-355 million, versus the consensus of $351.95 million.

Other Full Year 2020 Assumptions

• Estimated IP litigation expense of approximately $3.0 million ($0.05 per share) and severance and restructuring of $3.5 million to $4.0 million ($0.06 per share)
• Amortization of purchased intangibles of approximately $2.7 million
• Non-cash interest expense of approximately $11.0 million
• Stock-based compensation expense of approximately $57.5 million
• Depreciation and amortization of approximately $20.8 million
• Cash taxes paid of $3.0 million to $5.0 million. A GAAP tax liability of approximately $4.0 million
• Capital expenditures of approximately $47.0 million

For earnings history and earnings-related data on LivePerson (LPSN) click here.