HEALTHSOUTH Crushes Earnings Estimates

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

HEALTHSOUTH (NYS: HLS) reported earnings on Feb. 23. Here are the numbers you need to know.

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

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

Gross margins grew, operating margins increased, net margins shrank.

Revenue details
HEALTHSOUTH reported revenue of $518.1 million. The 15 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected to see revenue of $516.6 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 0.5% lower than the prior-year quarter's $520.7 million.

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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 $0.43. The 11 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.33 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.41 for Q4 were 94% lower than the prior-year quarter's $7.34 per share.

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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 46.4%, 60 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 19.3%, 120 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 9.7%, 13,990 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $527.7 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.39.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $2.12 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.44.

Investor sentiment
Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on HEALTHSOUTH is outperform, with an average price target of $25.80.

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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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