KLA-Tencor Catches Analysts Sleeping Again

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

KLA-Tencor (NAS: KLAC) reported earnings on Jan. 26. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q2), KLA-Tencor beat expectations on revenue and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue dropped significantly, and GAAP earnings per share grew.

Margins dropped across the board.

Revenue details
KLA-Tencor reported revenue of $642.5 million. The 16 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ looked for revenue of $629.4 million. Sales were 16% lower than the prior-year quarter's $766.3 million.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.72. The 18 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.65 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $1.13 for Q2 were 39% lower than the prior-year quarter's $1.09 per share.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Figures may be non-GAAP to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 57.5%, 190 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 24.8%, 1,040 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 17.2%, 700 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $797.4 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.10.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $3.08 billion. The average EPS estimate is $4.26.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 254 members out of 287 rating the stock outperform, and 33 members rating it underperform. Among 102 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 95 give KLA-Tencor a green thumbs-up, and seven give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on KLA-Tencor is outperform, with an average price target of $51.42.

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At the time thisarticle was published Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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