Itron Beats on EPS but GAAP Results Lag

Itron (Nasdaq: ITRI  ) filed its 10-K on Feb. 17. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Itron beat expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue improved and GAAP earnings per share shrank to a loss.

Gross margins shrank, operating margins expanded, net margins contracted.

Revenue details
Itron booked revenue of $642.5 million. The 22 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ wanted to see revenue of $582.1 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 3.5% higher than the prior-year quarter's $620.7 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $1.19. The 23 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.99 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS were -$1.34 for Q4 against $0.65 per share for the prior-year quarter.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 29.8%, 10 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 7.7%, 70 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -8.5%, 1,280 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $546.4 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.91.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $2.22 billion. The average EPS estimate is $3.97.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 533 members out of 556 rating the stock outperform, and 24 members rating it underperform. Among 157 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 153 give Itron a green thumbs-up, and four give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Itron is outperform, with an average price target of $45.58.

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