UPDATE 1-Autonomy sees Q3 ahead, confident about 2009

(Adds CEO comments, reaction, shares)

By Paul Sandle

LONDON, Oct 3 (Reuters) - British software group Autonomy Corporation Plc (AUTN.L) said it expected its third-quarter results to be "significantly ahead" of consensus expectations and it would rethink its view of 2009.

Chief Executive Mike Lynch said trading had continued to be strong, and the company, whose software tracks email and phone conservations, expected revenue and adjusted earnings per share for the quarter to end-September to be ahead of estimates.

"Our growth is regulatory driven, with no particular sector dominating," he told Reuters in a telephone interview on Friday.

The company, which rejoined the FTSE 100 index last month after seven years, said analysts' consensus for revenue was $121.6 million, while adjusted pretax profit was seen at $44.5 million and adjusted EPS was 14.8 cents.

However, Autonomy's shares were down 3 percent at 902.5 pence at 1233 GMT, as analysts said enterprise software spending was weakening.

Roger Phillips at Evolution Securities, whose revenue forecast was already significantly ahead of consensus at $130 million, warned 2009 looked bleak. "Any share price strength is an opportunity to get out ahead of a tough 2009," he said.

Derek Brown at Seymour Pierce, however, said he would be upgrading his $124 million revenue and 17 cents EPS forecast on the back of today's announcement.

"It was a strong third quarter, so much so that the normal seasonality hasn't been seen, which is extraordinary," he said, adding that deals with companies such as Xerox, Bayer and Statoil showed growth was broadly based.

Lynch said the group's "very large backlog", would provide protection in a deteriorating economic environment. "We have some flexibility in using that as a safety net if macro is weak," he said.

The company had traditionally taken a cautious stance, he said, but the strength of demand meant it was increasingly optimistic about 2009.

"We will probably be rethinking 2009," he said. "We are starting to get more confident about 2009 with the backlog and regulatory drivers gathering pace." (Editing by Simon Jessop)