SunOpta Beats on EPS but GAAP Results Lag

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

SunOpta (NAS: STKL) reported earnings on Mar. 6. Here are the numbers you need to know.

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

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue increased and GAAP earnings per share dropped to a loss.

Margins dropped across the board.

Revenue details
SunOpta chalked up revenue of $258.5 million. The six analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ looked for sales of $265.1 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 12% higher than the prior-year quarter's $230.4 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 $0.07. The seven earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $0.06 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS were -$0.11 for Q4 compared to $0.03 per share for the prior-year quarter.

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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 11.4%, 450 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 2.0%, 200 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -2.9%, 370 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $280.8 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.08.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.17 billion. The average EPS estimate is $0.40.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a one-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 217 members out of 319 rating the stock outperform, and 102 members rating it underperform. Among 84 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 35 give SunOpta a green thumbs-up, and 49 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on SunOpta is outperform, with an average price target of $7.38.

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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