Astec Industries (Nasdaq: ASTE) reported earnings on April 24. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Astec Industries missed estimates on revenue and whiffed on earnings per share.

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

Gross margin shrank, operating margin increased, and net margin grew.

Revenue details
Astec Industries tallied revenue of $266.6 million. The eight analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ foresaw revenue of $274.3 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 16% higher than the prior-year quarter's $230.2 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 $0.53. The 10 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.61 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.53 for Q1 were 20% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.44 per share.

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 22.7%, 110 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 7.0%, 40 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 4.6%, 20 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $289.1 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.75.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.10 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.42.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 267 members out of 279 rating the stock outperform, and 12 members rating it underperform. Among 102 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 100 give Astec Industries a green thumbs-up, and two give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Astec Industries is outperform, with an average price target of $43.00.

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