UniSource Energy Whiffs on Earnings

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

UniSource Energy (NYS: UNS) reported earnings on Feb. 27. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), UniSource Energy beat slightly on revenues and whiffed on earnings per share.

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

Gross margins expanded, operating margins dropped, and net margins contracted.

Revenue details
UniSource Energy recorded revenue of $344.1 million. The one analyst polled by S&P Capital IQ expected revenue of $338.8 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 4.2% lower than the prior-year quarter's $359.2 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
EPS came in at $0.22. The three earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $0.26 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.22 for Q4 were 24% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.29 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 28.3%, 80 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 12.1%, 130 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 2.4%, 70 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.31.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.44 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.52.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 60 members rating the stock outperform, and two members rating it underperform. Among 18 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 18 give UniSource Energy a green thumbs-up, and none give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on UniSource Energy is outperform, with an average price target of $39.44.

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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. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of UniSource Energy. 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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