Natural Resource Partners (NYSE: NRP) reported earnings on Feb. 14. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Natural Resource Partners beat slightly on revenue and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue expanded significantly, and GAAP earnings per share shrank to a loss.

Gross margin dropped, operating margin expanded, and net margin dropped.

Revenue details
Natural Resource Partners reported revenue of $97.7 million. The four analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ foresaw revenue of $95.8 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 26% higher than the prior-year quarter's $77.5 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.52. The six earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $0.48 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS were -$0.13 for Q4 compared to $0.39 per share for the prior-year quarter.

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 95.5%, 360 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 72.1%, 360 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -14.7%, 6,950 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $93.8 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.46.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $389.8 million. The average EPS estimate is $1.91.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 360 members rating the stock outperform and 20 members rating it underperform. Among 130 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 125 give Natural Resource Partners a green thumbs-up, and five give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Natural Resource Partners is outperform, with an average price target of $36.00.

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