Qiagen Beats on EPS but GAAP Results Lag

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Qiagen (NAS: QGEN) reported earnings on Jan. 31. Here are the numbers you need to know.

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

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

Margins contracted across the board.

Revenue details
Qiagen notched revenue of $334.4 million. The 22 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated a top line of $321.9 million. Sales were 17% higher than the prior-year quarter's $286.0 million.

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

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.31. The 19 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.28 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS dropped to zero from the prior-year quarter's $0.15.

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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 62.8%, 370 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 19.0%, 530 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -0.1%, 1,280 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $285.1 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.20.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.24 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.01.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 110 members out of 120 rating the stock outperform, and 10 members rating it underperform. Among 40 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 38 give Qiagen a green thumbs-up, and two give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Qiagen is outperform, with an average price target of $17.22.

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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