BE Aerospace Boosts 2012 Outlook As Q4 Earnings Rise Over 80%

BE Aerospace (NASDAQ:BEAV) increased its 2012 outlook on Wednesday, after reporting its fourth quarter earnings [see transcript], which rose over 80 percent to beat analysts' estimates.

For the full year fiscal 2012, the company said it expects to report earnings of about $2.75, representing an increase of 23 percent over the comparable period. Revenues are expected to rise 18 percent in 2012, to $2.95 billion.

The maker of airplane interiors had previously forecast $2.65 per share in earnings, while analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected profits of $2.74 per share.

For the three months that ended December 31, BE posted profits of $57.3 million, or $0.56 per share, up 84 percent from $31.2 million, or $0.31 per share, a year ago. Adjusted for certain one-time items, earnings rose 42 percent to $61 million, or $0.60 per share, beating analysts' 59-cents per share estimate. Revenues for the quarter hiked 21 percent to $654.7 million, from $541.8 million in the same period last year.

I am pleased to report that our 2011 results were the best in the company’s history. Sales, earnings, cash flow, bookings and backlog were all records. In addition, the company’s operating margin expanded 120 basis points to 17.1.

The substantial margin expansion was driven by our commercial aircraft and business jet segments which more than offset the margin drag from the consumables management segment acquisitions which we have now begun to integrate. - CEO Amin J. Khoury

Revenues under the company's commercial aircraft segment increased 25 percent to $350.1 million, largely due to ongoing operational efficiency initiatives, it said.

Its consumables management unit (CMS) posted a 17 percent hike in revenues, to $234.1 million, reflecting the company's Satair and LaSalle acquisitions, which have lower operating margins than the legacy CMS business, it said.

Its business jet division posted $70.5 million in revenues, up 17 percent, reflecting an improved product mix, it said.

The company also reported $2.9 billion in total bookings for the full 2011 year, up over 30 percent compared to 2010. This drove total backlog, both booked and unbooked, to a record $7.9 billion at year-end end, up 35 percent.

Booked backlog at the end of the calendar year was about $3.5 billion, up 15 percent.

Part of this backlog is related to the company's contract win for a new series of Boeing (BA) 737 airplanes. During the fourth quarter, BE was awarded the exclusive contract to manufacture the modular lavatory systems for the airplanes, which it will begin to deliver in the third quarter of 2013. The conract is valued in excess of $800 million, exclusive of retrofit orders, BE said.

In other news, the company said it completed its $400 million cash acquisition of UFC Aerospace.

For the full year fiscal 2011, BE reported adjusted earnings of $231.5 million, or $2.27 per share, up 47 percent. Revenues rose 26 percent to $2.5 billion.

On the Nasdaq Exchange, shares of the Wellington, Florida-based company closed at $43.92, up 4.08 percent.

Disclosure: None