DURHAM, N.C. (AP) _ Cree Inc. (CREE) on Tuesday reported a loss of $39.5 million in its fiscal fourth quarter.

The Durham, North Carolina-based company said it had a loss of 36 cents per share. Losses, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, came to 18 cents per share.

The results beat Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 20 cents per share.

The maker of energy-efficient lighting posted revenue of $205.7 million in the period, which also beat Street forecasts. Five analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $198.8 million.

For the year, the company reported that its loss narrowed to $191.7 million, or $1.78 per share. Revenue was reported as $903.9 million.

For the current quarter ending in October, Cree expects its results to range from a loss of 24 cents per share to a loss of 20 cents per share.

The company said it expects revenue in the range of $203 million to $217 million for the fiscal first quarter. Analysts surveyed by Zacks had expected revenue of $205.6 million.

Cree shares have increased 48% since the beginning of the year. In the final minutes of trading on Tuesday, shares hit $68.44, a climb of 17% in the last 12 months.

This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on CREE at https://www.zacks.com/ap/CREE

Automated Insights, source Associated Press News