Alliance Holdings (Nasdaq: AHGP) reported earnings on April 30. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Alliance Holdings missed estimates on revenues and crushed expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue increased and GAAP earnings per share shrank.

Margins contracted across the board.

Revenue details
Alliance Holdings reported revenue of $443.5 million. The three analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ foresaw revenue of $465.3 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 4.8% higher than the prior-year quarter's $423.2 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 $0.82. The three earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.66 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.82 for Q1 were 4.7% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.86 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 33.6%, 280 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 20.6%, 370 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 11.1%, 110 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $508.3 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.74.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $2.09 billion. The average EPS estimate is $3.14.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 258 members out of 265 rating the stock outperform, and seven members rating it underperform. Among 73 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 72 give Alliance Holdings a green thumbs-up, and one gives it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Alliance Holdings is outperform, with an average price target of $62.50.

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