Heckmann Misses Where It Counts

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Heckmann (NYS: HEK) reported earnings on May 3. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Heckmann beat slightly on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

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


Gross margins contracted, operating margins improved, and net margins contracted.

Revenue details
Heckmann booked revenue of $55.0 million. The six analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected revenue of $54.3 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were much higher than the prior-year quarter's $23.8 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 -$0.03. The six earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.00 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.03 for Q1 compared to $0.00 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 12.7%, 870 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -2.3%, 290 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -7.0%, 850 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $98.5 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.03.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $370.8 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.12.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 410 members out of 423 rating the stock outperform, and 13 members rating it underperform. Among 92 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 86 give Heckmann a green thumbs-up, and six give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Heckmann is hold, with an average price target of $6.58.

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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 Heckmann. 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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