Spartan Motors Catches Analysts Sleeping Again

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Spartan Motors (NAS: SPAR) reported earnings on Feb. 14. Here are the numbers you need to know.

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

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

Gross margin shrank, operating margin improved, and net margin dropped.

Revenue details
Spartan Motors recorded revenue of $120.3 million. The three analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ hoped for net sales of $106.5 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 12% lower than the prior-year quarter's $126.9 million.

anImage
anImage

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 $0.10. The three earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $0.03 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.02 for Q3 were 80% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.10 per share.

anImage
anImage

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 13.1%, 220 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 0.9%, 40 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 0.6%, 210 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $108.7 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.04.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $423.5 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.10.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 577 members out of 609 rating the stock outperform, and 32 members rating it underperform. Among 180 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 177 give Spartan Motors a green thumbs-up, and three give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Spartan Motors is outperform, with an average price target of $7.50.

Over the decades, small-cap stocks like Spartan Motors have provided market-beating returns, provided they're value-priced and have solid businesses. Read about a pair of companies with a lock on their markets in "Too Small to Fail: Two Small Caps the Government Won't Let Go Broke." Click here for instant access to this free report.

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.

Copyright © 1995 - 2012 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Advertisement