Okta forecasts slowest revenue growth since IPO amid economic uncertainty

By Anhata Rooprai

March 4 (Reuters) - Okta forecast first-quarter revenue below Wall Street expectations on Wednesday, projecting single-digit ‌growth for the first time since its 2017 ‌IPO as economic uncertainty weighs on enterprise technology spending.

The identity security company ​said it expects revenue between $749 million and $753 million for the first quarter, representing a growth of 9%.

This was below analysts' average estimate of $754.61 million, according to data compiled by LSEG. ‌Analysts were expecting ⁠a revenue growth of 9.7%.

While identity management is typically viewed as a more resilient area ⁠of IT spending, Okta has faced pressure as enterprise customers delay projects and scrutinize costs.

Analysts have said tighter budgets could ​push some ​customers to renew later than ​usual or scale back ‌deployments, particularly because software is often priced per employee and hiring trends remain muted.

Chief Operating Officer Eric Kelleher told Reuters that the company has not yet seen any meaningful impact from seat reductions showing up in its results.

Okta also ‌expects adjusted profit between 84 ​cents and 86 cents per share ​for the fiscal quarter, ​below estimates of 87 cents.

For the fourth ‌quarter ended January 31, Okta's ​revenue rose over ​11% to $761 million, beating estimates of $748.8 million.

Adjusted profit came in at 90 cents per share, beating estimates ​of 85 cents.

Okta ‌competes with identity and access management providers such as ​Ping Identity and SailPoint.

(Reporting by Anhata Rooprai in ​Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)