Western Gas Partners Increases Sales but Misses Estimates on Earnings

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Western Gas Partners (NYS: WES) reported earnings on Feb. 27. Here are the numbers you need to know.

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

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

Margins dropped across the board.

Revenue details
Western Gas Partners recorded revenue of $175.9 million. The five analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected sales of $166.7 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 41% higher than the prior-year quarter's $127.1 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 $0.41. The nine earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.45 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.35 for Q3 were 24% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.46 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 46.2%, 770 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 24.2%, 730 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 19.2%, 840 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $179.9 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.43.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $653.0 million. The average EPS estimate is $1.65.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 243 members out of 247 rating the stock outperform, and four members rating it underperform. Among 83 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 83 give Western Gas Partners a green thumbs-up.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Western Gas Partners is outperform, with an average price target of $42.73.

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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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