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What: Alon USA Energy
So what: Non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.34 compared favorably with a loss of $0.91 in the year-ago quarter and the consensus estimate of $0.21. Net sales almost tripled year over year, thanks to increases in volume and, to a lesser extent, prices.
Now what: Profits are benefiting primarily from higher revenue and secondarily from ongoing initiatives to improve profitability at the company's Krotz Springs refinery. Alon restarted its California refineries at the end of March and expects them to be fully operational in June, suggesting that volumes can continue to improve significantly into the third quarter. Although pricing could be a drag on the top line going forward, higher volumes and productivity initiatives suggest that earnings estimates are too low.
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