VeriFone shares mauled, Tesla drops after hours

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) � VeriFone Systems Inc. shares sank late Wednesday, losing a third of their value following the company�s warning about quarterly results, while Tesla Motors Inc. shares fell, with a quarterly adjusted loss at the electric-car maker missing Wall Street�s forecast.

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VeriFone shares PAY �� tumbled 32% to $21.58 after the electronic payments company cut its first-quarter forecast, citing project delays by some customers as among the reasons for its weaker outlook.

VeriFone now expects first-quarter adjusted earnings of 47 cents to 50 cents a share on revenue of $425 million to $430 million. It had previously expected earnings of 70 cents to 73 cents a share and $490 million to $500 million in revenue.

The company foresees second-quarter earnings of 45 cents to 50 cents a share on revenue of $435 million to $450 million. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected VeriFone to report earnings of 80 cents a share and $514 million in sales. See: VeriFone slashes first-quarter forecast.

Stock in Tesla TSLA �lost 6.6% to $36 following the company�s report of a fourth-quarter adjusted loss of 65 cents a share. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected, on average, a loss of 59 cents a share. Follow live blog of Tesla's quarterly conference call.

Andrew Yeadon/The Wall Street Journal 2012 Tesla Model S Signature.

But revenue of $306 million for the most recent period was ahead of the $311 million consensus estimate. Tesla also said it aims to post a slight adjusted profit in the first quarter, and it backed its forecast to deliver about 20,000 Model S units this year.

Moving higher were shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev BUD �� BE:ABI �and Constellation Brands Inc. STZ � by 1.3% and 5.3%, respectively.

AB InBev said that it, Constellation, Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo SAB�and Crown Imports LLC are in talks with the U.S. Department of Justice about resolving the Justice Department�s lawsuit challenging AB InBev�s proposed acquisition of the remaining stake in Modelo GPMCY MX:GMODELOC �that it does not already own.

All parties have agreed to jointly request from the court a stay of all litigation proceedings until March 19, said AB InBev, adding there can be no assurance the discussions will be successful.

Ahead of late trading, U.S. stocks retreated from multiyear highs as minutes from the Federal Reserve�s indicated policy makers will consider major changes to its bond-buying program.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA �ended 108 points lower, or 0.8%, to 13,927.54. The S&P 500 index SPX �lost 1.2% to 1,511.95, and the Nasdaq Composite COMP �fell 1.5% to 3,164.41.