Heritage-Crystal Clean (Nasdaq: HCCI) reported earnings Feb. 22. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Heritage-Crystal Clean beat expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

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

Margins shrank across the board.

Revenue details
Heritage-Crystal Clean logged revenue of $54.9 million. The three analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ wanted to see a top line of $47.8 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 52% higher than the prior-year quarter's $36.0 million.

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

EPS details
EPS came in at -$0.01. The three earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.05 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.01 for Q4 versus $0.07 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 15.2%, 5,630 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -0.5%, 480 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -0.3%, 290 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $38.0 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.07.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $208.1 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.74.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 57 members out of 61 rating the stock outperform, and four members rating it underperform. Among 15 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 15 give Heritage-Crystal Clean a green thumbs-up.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Heritage-Crystal Clean is outperform, with an average price target of $23.00.

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