Priceline Expecting Domestic Delays: Fool by Numbers

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On May 8, Priceline.com (Nasdaq: PCLN) released first-quarter earnings for the period ended March 31.

• To find out why Foolish contributor Rick Munarriz doesn't think Priceline's posted results should be taken at face value, read his earnings take.
• Total revenue increased by 24.6% to $301.4 million. However, adjusted pro forma revenues were less at $285.5 million. 
• The company expects continued advancement within the European market. But lower airline ticket margins and marketing hurdles in the domestic market will offset growth from its European counterpart.
• Priceline is sitting on the runway with three stars in Motley Fool CAPS, our free interactive stock database. Travel services peer Expedia (Nasdaq: EXPE) -- who also reported earnings yesterday -- holds the same three-star rating. Of the ranked travel services companies tagged in CAPS, the only company to hold a higher ranking is Ctrip.com (Nasdaq: CTRP), which has four out of the five available stars.

(Figures in millions, except per-share data)

Income Statement Highlights

	Q1 2007	Q1 2006	Change
Sales	$301.4	$241.9	24.6%
Net Profit	($16.3)	($1.0)	N/A
EPS	($0.44)	($0.02)	N/A
Diluted Shares	37.2	39.4	(5.6%)

Get back to basics with a look at the income statement.

Margin Checkup

	Q1 2007	Q1 2006	Change*
Gross Margin	39.7%	29.9%	9.9
Operating Margin	(10.5%)	(0.5%)	(10.0)
Net Margin	(5.4%)	(0.4%)	(5.0)

*Expressed in percentage points.

Margins are the earnings engine. See how they work.

Balance Sheet Highlights

Assets	Q1 2007	Q1 2006	Change
Cash + ST Invest.	$455.0	$167.5	171.7%
Accounts Rec.	$52.1	$33.8	54.1%
Inventory	N/A	N/A	N/A

Liabilities	Q1 2007	Q1 2006	Change
Accounts Payable	$57.9	$49.4	17.2%
Total Debt*	$569.0	$223.2	154.9%

*Includes convertible debt.

Learn the ways of the balance sheet.

Cash Flow Highlights

Priceline must be on vacation, because it forgot to include a cash flow statement in the press release.

Free cash flow is a Fool's best friend

Related Foolishness:

• Name Your Own Priceline
• Priceline's Latest Step Toward the Light
• Priceline's European Vacation

Priceline is a Stock Advisor recommendation and Ctrip.com is a  Hidden Gems pick. A 30-day trial to either newsletter will send your portfolio flying.

Fool by Numbers is designed to give you the raw earnings information in a timely fashion, putting all the numbers you need in one easy-to-read place. But at The Motley Fool, we believe numbers tell only part of the story, so check Fool.com for more of our in-depth discussion of what the numbers mean. This data has been provided by Netscribes. To provide feedback on this article, please click on the "feedback" button below.