Aspen Technology Beats on Both Top and Bottom Lines

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Aspen Technology (NAS: AZPN) reported earnings on Nov. 1. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended Sep. 30 (Q1), Aspen Technology beat expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

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


Margins grew across the board.

Revenue details
 Aspen Technology tallied revenue of $71.5 million. The seven analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected to see sales of $65.2 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 39% higher than the prior-year quarter's $51.2 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 $0.08. The seven earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $0.02 per share. GAAP EPS were $0.05 for Q1 against -$0.12 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 82.7%, 970 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 12.6%, 4,320 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 6.2%, 2,910 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $70.2 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.04.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $288.1 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.19.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a two-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 68 members out of 96 rating the stock outperform, and 28 members rating it underperform. Among 31 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 19 give Aspen Technology a green thumbs-up, and 12 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Aspen Technology is buy, with an average price target of $28.20.

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The article Aspen Technology Beats on Both Top and Bottom Lines 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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