PolyOne (NYSE: POL) reported earnings on May 3. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), PolyOne met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

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

Gross margins grew, operating margins dropped, net margins dropped.

Revenue details
PolyOne reported revenue of $781.0 million. The six analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected to see revenue of $776.1 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 8.7% higher than the prior-year quarter's $718.5 million.

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

EPS details
EPS came in at $0.29. The seven earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.26 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.22 for Q1 were 81% lower than the prior-year quarter's $1.14 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 18.0%, 120 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 5.7%, 40 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 2.6%, 1,270 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $840.9 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.35.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $3.16 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.16.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 152 members out of 167 rating the stock outperform, and 15 members rating it underperform. Among 39 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 37 give PolyOne 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 PolyOne is outperform, with an average price target of $17.17.

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