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United Technologies Misses on the Top and Bottom Lines

By Seth Jayson – Updated Apr 10, 2017 at 7:42AM

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Just the facts, Fool.

United Technologies (NYSE: UTX) reported earnings on April 23. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), United Technologies missed estimates on revenues and missed estimates on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue expanded significantly. Non-GAAP earnings per share shrank significantly. GAAP earnings per share increased significantly.

Gross margins contracted, operating margins dropped, net margins increased.

Revenue details
United Technologies tallied revenue of $14.40 billion. The 18 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected a top line of $14.93 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 16% higher than the prior-year quarter's $12.42 billion.

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 $1.28. The 23 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $1.30 per share. Non-GAAP EPS of $1.28 for Q1 were 20% lower than the prior-year quarter's $1.61 per share. (The prior-year quarter included -$0.95 per share in earnings from discontinued operations.) GAAP EPS of $1.39 for Q1 were 276% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.37 per share. (The prior-year quarter included -$0.95 per share in earnings from discontinued operations.)

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 27.3%, 170 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 13.9%, 30 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 8.8%, 610 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. (Margins calculated in GAAP terms.)

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $16.48 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.58.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $65.07 billion. The average EPS estimate is $6.11.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 1,549 members out of 1,611 rating the stock outperform, and 62 members rating it underperform. Among 429 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 417 give United Technologies a green thumbs-up, and 12 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on United Technologies is outperform, with an average price target of $100.95.

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Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor of Motley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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