MDC Partners Posts a Surprise Profit

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

MDC Partners (NAS: MDCA) reported earnings on Nov. 5. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended Sep. 30 (Q3), MDC Partners missed estimates on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue expanded and GAAP loss per share dropped. The non-GAAP profit was a surprise, as analysts had predicted a loss.


Margins increased across the board.

Revenue details
 MDC Partners recorded revenue of $267.8 million. The six analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected a top line of $273.5 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 12% higher than the prior-year quarter's $238.2 million.

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 $0.02. The five earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged -$0.04 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.47 for Q3 against -$0.67 per share for the prior-year quarter.

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 32.5%, 610 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 0.5%, 200 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -5.4%, 280 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $295.6 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.28.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.07 billion. The average EPS estimate is -$1.06.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a two-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 27 members out of 39 rating the stock outperform, and 12 members rating it underperform. Among 17 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 13 give MDC Partners a green thumbs-up, and four give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on MDC Partners is buy, with an average price target of $16.83.

The article MDC Partners Posts a Surprise Profit originally appeared on Fool.com.

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 has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. 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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