Database company Couchbase Inc. delivered a solid earnings and revenue beat today, sending its stock slightly higher in extended trading today.

The company reported a fiscal first-quarter loss before certain costs such as stock compensation of 10 cents per share, exceeding the analysts’ consensus estimate of 15 cents per share by a fairly decent margin. Revenue for the period jumped 25% from a year earlier, to $51.3 million, ahead of Wall Street’s target of $48.5 million.

Despite the earnings and revenue beats, Couchbase made little progress toward becoming more profitable. It net loss for the quarter came to $20.9 million, down only slightly from the $21.9 million loss it posted one year earlier.

The company is the creator of the popular Couchbase NoSQL database service that allows enterprises to store large volumes of semistructured data. Its flagship product is the cloud-based Couchbase Capella database-as-a-service product, and it also sells a traditional on-premises version called Couchbase Server, plus a mobile version.

Couchbase Capella’s main advantage over traditional databases such as Oracle Database is that it can process both structured and unstructured information at the same time. It’s a fairly unique capability that makes Couchbase a better choice for certain kinds of applications that need to access both types of data, as it means they can use just one product. The platform can also act as a data cache, meaning users actually get three systems for the price of one.

Couchbase Chief Executive Matt Cain (pictured) said Capella improved its revenue share during the quarter, while his team made meaningful progress in its ongoing effort to improve operational efficiency and rigor. “I’m particularly pleased that we delivered revenue and operating loss results that exceeded our outlook and delivered our first quarter of free cash flow positivity,” he added. “I remain confident in our strategy and ability to achieve our objectives in fiscal 2025.”

The company reported strong numbers across every major metric, with annual recurring revenue up 21% from a year ago to $207.7 million, a gross margin of 89.9% at the end of the quarter, compared with 86.4% three months earlier, and remaining performance obligations of $220 million, up 33% from last year.

During the quarter, the company launched its new vector search and retrieval-augmented generation capabilities in general availability, as part of its push to become more relevant for generative artificial intelligence-powered applications. The new features, available in both Couchbase Capella and Couchbase Server, enable enhanced database search for generative AI apps while allowing them to tap into external data that improves their knowledge beyond their basic training datasets. As a result, companies can use Capella as the foundation of more capable generative AI models that can be customized for unique workloads.

Couchbase also launched a generative AI feature of its own with the debut of its Couchbase Docs chatbot, which is powered by Amazon Web Services Inc.’s Amazon Bedrock platforms, and aims to make life easier for developers using its platform.

Finally, the company announced it had hired its first chief information officer in Julie Irish, who will be tasked with leading its global information technology and security teams.

For the next quarter, Couchbase seems optimistic that it will continue making good progress. It’s expecting second-quarter revenue of between $50.6 million and $51.4 million, ahead of the consensus estimate of $50.7 million.

Investors seemed pleased enough with the company’s results, with Couchbase’s stock rising just over 2% in the after-hours training session, adding to a gain of 1% earlier in the day.

Photo: Couchbase