Avid Tech shares sink on weak quarterly results

Oct 24 (Reuters) - Digital video editing and software firm Avid Technology Inc's (AVID.O) shares hit their 52-week low, a day after the company posted a wider quarterly loss, sold a unit and announced job cuts.

Canaccord Adams analyst Steven Frankel said the quarter contained a number of items that masked improvements in gross margin. This, "when combined with a pending reduction in the workforce of 500 employees, set the stage for material margin improvement," he added.

Avid, which sold its Softimage 3D animation unit to Autodesk Inc (ADSK.O) for about $35 million, reported a third-quarter loss of $66.4 million, or $1.80 a share, compared with a loss of $5.9 million, or 14 cents a share, in the year-ago period. [nWNAB1024] The company is taking necessary steps to align its cost structure to support its core product lines, said Chief Executive Gary Greenfield in a press release.

Shares of Tewksbury, Massachusetts-based company were down more than 19 percent at $13 in midday trade on Nasdaq. They had touched their lows of $11.55 in the earlier session.

(Reporting by Kuganandhan Paramanandan in Bangalore; Editing by Anil D'Silva; )

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