Shares of Cirrus Logic (CRUS -1.96%) opened 13.4% higher on Wednesday morning following the release of impressive results for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024. The designer of audio controllers and mixed-signal processors cooled down a bit from the early spike, and the stock was up 10.2% as of 2:30 p.m. ET.
Cirrus Logic by the numbers
Cirrus' fourth-quarter revenue held steady year-over-year at $372 million. Adjusted earnings rose 35% to $1.24 per share. Both results left the consensus estimates far behind; your average Wall Street analyst would have settled for earnings of roughly $0.64 per share on sales near $317 million.
Looking ahead to the first quarter of fiscal 2025, management expects sales to follow typical seasonal patterns and land at approximately $320 million. The current analyst projections call for roughly $302 million, so that's another bullish data point.
What's going on in the smartphone market?
Cirrus CEO John Forsyth credited the fourth-quarter surprise to strong demand for high-end smartphones. The company continues to supply audio and security chips for the full range of Apple (AAPL 0.02%) iPhones, so Cirrus tapped into Cupertino's solid iPhone business. The company is also seeking ways to expand beyond this core client, and an unnamed maker of Android phones shipped a new model with Cirrus Logic's audio and haptic feedback solutions in the fourth quarter.
This iPhone component supplier's strong results point to robust orders from Apple and its manufacturing partners. Meanwhile, Cirrus Logic investors have enjoyed market-beating returns over the past year, and the stock still looks underpriced.
