Exar (Nasdaq: EXAR) reported earnings on May 3. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended April 1 (Q4), Exar beat expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

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

Margins shrank across the board.

Revenue details
Exar notched revenue of $27.8 million. The two analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected to see net sales of $27.2 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 18% lower than the prior-year quarter's $33.8 million.

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

EPS details
EPS came in at -$0.10. The two earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted -$0.09 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.48 for Q4 against -$0.43 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 39.8%, 550 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -30.1%, 320 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -77.6%, 2,180 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $29.9 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.02.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $125.0 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.21.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 80 members out of 84 rating the stock outperform, and four members rating it underperform. Among 18 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 16 give Exar a green thumbs-up, and two give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Exar is outperform, with an average price target of $8.75.

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