Brady (NYSE: BRC) came in under analysts' estimates last quarter but now has a chance to fix things. The company will unveil its latest earnings on Monday, Sept. 12. Brady is an international manufacturer and marketer of identification solutions and products that identify and protect premises, products, and people.
What analysts say:
- Buy, sell, or hold?: Analysts think investors should stand pat on Brady, with five of eight rating it a hold. Analysts don't like Brady as much as competitor Checkpoint Systems overall. Two out of three rate Checkpoint Systems a buy, compared with three of eight for Brady. While analysts still rate the stock a hold, they are a little more optimistic about it compared with three months ago.
- Revenue forecasts: On average, analysts predict $344.6 million in revenue this quarter. That would represent a rise of 6.7% from the year-ago quarter.
- Wall Street earnings expectations: The average analyst estimate is earnings of $0.60 per share. Estimates range from $0.55 to $0.65.
What our community says:
CAPS All-Stars are solidly backing the stock, with 92.6% granting it an "outperform" rating. The community at large backs the All-Stars, with 92.1% awarding it a rating of "outperform." Fools are bullish on Brady, though the message boards have been quiet lately, with only 41 posts in the past 30 days. Despite the majority sentiment in favor of Brady, the stock has a middling CAPS rating of three out of five stars.
Management:
Brady's profit has risen year over year by an average of 28.9% over the past five quarters. Revenue has now gone up for three straight quarters.
Now let's look at how efficient management is at running the business. Traditionally, margins represent the efficiency with which companies capture portions of sales dollars. The following table shows gross, operating, and net margins over the past four quarters.
| Quarter | Q3 | Q2 | Q1 | Q4 |
| Gross Margin | 49.6% | 48.3% | 49.9% | 49.2% |
| Operating Margin | 12.1% | 11.3% | 12.6% | 10.6% |
| Net Margin | 8.5% | 7.4% | 8% | 6.7% |
