TransAtlantic Petroleum Beats on the Top Line

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

TransAtlantic Petroleum (ASE: TAT) reported earnings on March 16. Here are the numbers you need to know.

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

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

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

Revenue details
TransAtlantic Petroleum reported revenue of $35.8 million. The two analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ looked for revenue of $37.8 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 21% higher than the prior-year quarter's $30.3 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 -$0.14. The two earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $0.00 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS were -$34.14 for Q4 compared to -$0.09 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 82.5%, 4,800 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -115.3%, 1,140 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -182.4%, 7,930 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $37.9 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is -$0.01.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $166.1 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.01.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 204 members out of 209 rating the stock outperform, and five members rating it underperform. Among 30 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 27 give TransAtlantic Petroleum a green thumbs-up, and three give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on TransAtlantic Petroleum is hold, with an average price target of $3.44.

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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. 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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