ViaSat Beats on the Top Line

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

ViaSat (NAS: VSAT) reported earnings on May 17. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 30 (Q4), ViaSat beat expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

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


Margins shrank across the board.

Revenue details
ViaSat booked revenue of $240.5 million. The 10 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ looked for net sales of $227.4 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 11% higher than the prior-year quarter's $216.4 million.

anImage
anImage

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 -$0.01. The nine earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $0.08 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.17 for Q4 against $0.28 per share for the prior-year quarter.

anImage
anImage

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 22.9%, 790 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -2.4%, 780 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -3.1%, 870 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $234.7 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is -$0.14.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.05 billion. The average EPS estimate is $0.37.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 91 members out of 99 rating the stock outperform, and eight members rating it underperform. Among 25 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 25 give ViaSat a green thumbs-up.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on ViaSat is hold, with an average price target of $49.50.

The game is changing for makers of communications equipment, and some of the old guard may not make it. Where will ViaSat fit in? Who's going to lead going forward? Check out "3 Hidden Winners of the iPhone, iPad, and Android Revolution." Click here for instant access to this free report.

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.

Copyright © 1995 - 2012 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Advertisement