Palm swings to first-quarter loss

Struggling Treo smart-phone maker Palm Inc. swung to a small loss Monday for its fiscal first quarter as it faced stiffening competition.

In the three months ended Aug. 31, Palm said it lost $841,000, or a penny a share, on revenue that rose 1% to $360.8 million. In the year-earlier period, Palm earned $16.5 million on revenue of $355.8 million.

Excluding one-time items that included $5.1 million in stock-based compensation expenses, a $5-million patent-acquisition cost and $6.6 million in restructuring charges, the Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company said it would have earned $9.7 million, or 9 cents a share.

Palm also issued a weak forecast Monday. For its fiscal second quarter, Palm said it expected a loss of 1 cent to 3 cents a share on revenue of $370 million to $380 million. On an adjusted basis, it expects earnings of 6 cents to 8 cents a share.

Palm has had increased competition the last year -- most notably from Apple Inc.’s iPhone.

Shares of Palm slipped 27 cents to $16 in regular trading Monday and fell an additional 61 cents, to $15.39 in extended trading after the report.