FMC Increases Sales but Misses Revenue Estimate (FMC)

FMC Increases Sales but Misses Revenue Estimate

FMC (NYSE: FMC ) reported earnings on Oct. 29. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Sep. 30 (Q3), FMC missed estimates on revenues and met expectations on earnings per share.

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

Gross margins increased, operating margins expanded, net margins dropped.

Revenue details
FMC notched revenue of $902.4 million. The seven analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ hoped for a top line of $931.4 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 4.7% higher than the prior-year quarter's $862.1 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 $0.79. The 10 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.78 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.65 for Q3 were 6.6% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.61 per share. (The prior-year quarter included -$0.04 per share in earnings from discontinued operations.)

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 35.0%, 170 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 17.6%, 40 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 10.0%, 10 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $984.2 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.81.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $3.72 billion. The average EPS estimate is $3.47.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 400 members out of 418 rating the stock outperform, and 18 members rating it underperform. Among 83 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 80 give FMC a green thumbs-up, and three give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on FMC is outperform, with an average price target of $60.29.

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Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor of Motley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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