Boston Beer Crushes Earnings Estimates

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Boston Beer (NYS: SAM) reported earnings on May 2. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Boston Beer met expectations on revenues and crushed expectations on earnings per share.

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


Margins improved across the board.

Revenue details
Boston Beer logged revenue of $113.3 million. The six analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ predicted revenue of $112.7 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 11% higher than the prior-year quarter's $102.2 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 $0.56. The seven earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.41 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.56 for Q1 were 100% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.28 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 54.6%, 330 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 10.5%, 410 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 6.6%, 270 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $150.7 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.25.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $558.4 million. The average EPS estimate is $4.14.

Investor sentiment
Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Boston Beer is hold, with an average price target of $104.14.

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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. The Motley Fool owns shares of Boston Beer. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Boston Beer. 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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