What happened
Shares of Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL 0.66%) gained 13.5% in November, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. The real-estate services company delivered earnings well ahead of the market's expectations, which boosted the stock early in the month and paved the way for more gains as the broader market rallied.
JLL reported third-quarter results on Nov. 6, including profits for the period that crushed the average analyst targets. The company's non-GAAP (adjusted) earnings per share for the period came in at $3.52, while the average analyst estimate had called for per-share earnings of $2.68. Sales for the period rose 13.4% to come in at roughly $4.5 billion.
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So what
JLL's revenue before reimbursements came in at $2.55 billion in the third quarter, topping the average analyst target by roughly $99 million. Real estate services revenue climbed 15% year over year to reach $4.38 billion, while revenue from the LaSalle division dropped 35% year over year to land at $111.6 million.
Jones Lang LaSalle's performance in the quarter was boosted by the company's acquisition of capital markets and brokerage services firm HFF. Earnings per diluted share for the quarter were up roughly 16.5% year over year, adjusted EBITDA rising roughly 28% to $299.9 million and adjusted net income attributable to ordinary shareholders rising 32% year over year to $183.5 million.
Now what
JLL also paired the earnings release with news of an authorization to buy back $200 million in stock, although it said it had not bought back any shares in 2019 as of Nov. 5. As stated in the company's third-quarter earnings release, the program "affirms confidence in JLL's business outlook and long-term commitment to maintaining investment-grade credit ratings."
The company expects to grow revenue at a compound annual growth rate of roughly 10% through 2025 and is currently valued at roughly 12.7 times this year's expected earnings and 0.85 times expected sales.
