Shares in Cogent Systems Inc. closed up 23 percent Wednesday after the company reported a dip in fourth quarter profit that still beat Wall Street’s expectations.

For the quarter that ended Dec. 31, Cogent reported net income of $7.7 million (8 cents per share), a 44 percent dip $13.7 million (14 cents) from the same period a year earlier – -which bested analysts’ expectation of 7 cents per share, according to Thomson Financial.

Sales for the Pasadena-based biometric equipment maker also fell by 48 percent to $21.9 million, missing Wall Street’s predictions of $23 million, mainly due to a 59 percent drop in product revenue fell to $14.9 million.

For the full year, net income dipped 3.7 percent to $28.6 million (30 cents) while sales rose 5 percent to $106 million.

Shares in Cogent closed up 23 percent Wednesday to $11.33 in trading on the Nasdaq.