Questar Beats Analyst Estimates on EPS (STR)

Questar Beats Analyst Estimates on EPS

Questar (NYSE: STR ) reported earnings on Oct. 30. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Sep. 30 (Q3), Questar whiffed on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

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

Gross margins grew, operating margins dropped, net margins dropped.

Revenue details
Questar reported revenue of $141.8 million. The two analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ wanted to see revenue of $167.3 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 3.3% lower than the prior-year quarter's $146.7 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 $0.19. The nine earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.18 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.19 for Q3 were 5.0% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.20 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 95.9%, 880 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 43.1%, 30 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 23.8%, 80 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $392.7 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.35.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.29 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.18.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 301 members out of 321 rating the stock outperform, and 20 members rating it underperform. Among 96 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 89 give Questar a green thumbs-up, and seven give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Questar is hold, with an average price target of $20.93.

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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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