Cenovus Energy Increases Sales but Misses Estimates on Earnings

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Cenovus Energy (NYS: CVE) reported earnings on May 1. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Cenovus Energy beat expectations on revenue and missed estimates on earnings per share.

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


Gross margin contracted, operating margin expanded, and net margin improved.

Revenue details
Cenovus Energy reported revenue of $4.57 billion. The three analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ foresaw revenue of $4.38 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 27% higher than the prior-year quarter's $3.60 billion.

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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 $0.46. The 14 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $0.52 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.56 for Q1 were much higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.06 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 23.2%, 30 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 13.9%, 1,020 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 9.3%, 800 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $3.96 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.56.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $16.59 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.14.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 128 members out of 133 rating the stock outperform, and five members rating it underperform. Among 31 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), all 31 give Cenovus Energy a green thumbs-up.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Cenovus Energy is outperform, with an average price target of $46.33.

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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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