BroadSoft (Nasdaq: BSFT) reported earnings yesterday. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), BroadSoft beat expectations on revenues and crushed expectations on earnings per share.

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

Margins dropped across the board.

Revenue details
BroadSoft notched revenue of $40.6 million. The 11 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ wanted to see a top line of $37 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 13% higher than the prior-year quarter's $35.8 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.38. The nine earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.28 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.19 for Q4 were 54% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.41 per share.

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 84.6%, 120 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 20.9%, 1,350 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 13.5%, 1,780 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $35.1 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.21.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $163.5 million. The average EPS estimate is $1.21.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a one-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 40 members rating the stock outperform and 102 members rating it underperform. Among 51 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), eight give BroadSoft a green thumbs-up, and 43 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on BroadSoft is outperform, with an average price target of $41.06.

Over the decades, small-cap stocks, like BroadSoft have provided market-beating returns, provided they're value priced and have solid businesses. Read about a pair of companies with a lock on their markets in "Too Small to Fail: Two Small Caps the Government Won't Let Go Broke." Click here for instant access to this free report.