Image source: TASER International.
What happened
Shares of Taser and body camera maker TASER International, Inc. (AXON -1.37%) jumped as much as 18.3% on Thursday after reporting better-than-expected earnings. At 12:40 p.m. EST, the stock was still up an impressive 11.9%.
So what
Revenue rose 43% from a year ago to $71.9 million, easily topping the $59.1 million analysts were expecting. On the bottom line, net income more than doubled to $3.8 million, or $0.07 per share, beating estimates by a penny.
Weapon sales growth of 34% to $52.9 million dominated the results last quarter, but the great figure long term was Axon revenue rising 75% to $18.9 million and Axon service margins jumping to 81%. Evidence.com drives Axon service margins, and with long-term contracts to sell these services to law enforcement agencies, the business will be raking in cash for years to come.
Now what
Beating Wall Street's expectations can often lead to a large move in a stock like TASER International, but investors should really be happy that the business is performing so well. Body cameras are now in over half of the major cities in the U.S. and TASER International is just starting to gain traction in the international market. As the service contracts these cameras bring start to add up, the company's revenue and profits will continue to grow. The future looks bright for TASER International.
