Molson Coors Brewing Beats Estimates on Top and Bottom Lines

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Molson Coors Brewing (NYS: TAP) reported earnings on Feb. 16. Here are the numbers you need to know.

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

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

Gross margin contracted, operating margin grew, and net margin improved.

Revenue details
Molson Coors Brewing chalked up revenue of $937.3 million. The five analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ hoped for revenue of $926.2 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 12% higher than the prior-year quarter's $835.1 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 $0.97. The six earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $0.71 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.95 for Q4 were 64% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.58 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 41.8%, 120 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 14.0%, 270 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 18.5%, 540 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $702.8 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.41.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $3.56 billion. The average EPS estimate is $3.69.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 805 members rating the stock outperform and 33 members rating it underperform. Among 244 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 236 give Molson Coors Brewing a green thumbs-up, and eight give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Molson Coors Brewing is hold, with an average price target of $44.

Can your retirement portfolio provide you with enough income to last? You'll need more than Molson Coors Brewing. Learn about crafting a smarter retirement plan in "The Shocking Can't-Miss Truth About Your Retirement." 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. The Motley Fool owns shares of Molson Coors Brewing. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Molson Coors Brewing. 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