Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.
What's happening?
Shares of FEI (FEIC +0.00%) are currently trading 8% lower today after dipping by as much as 10% in early trading, after the nanotechnology instrument specialist reported underwhelming earnings and offered weak forward guidance following Wednesday's closing bell.
Why it's happening.
FEI's revenue came in at $265.3 million for the fourth quarter, well below Wall Street's expectations of $274.1 million. The company's adjusted earnings of $0.98 per share also missed Wall Street's consensus estimate of $1.03. The company blamed unfavorable foreign exchange rates and the oil price crash for its shortfall. Over its entire 2014 fiscal year, FEI earned $2.47 in adjusted EPS on revenue of $956.3 million, which compares unfavorably to 2013's $976.2 million top line and $3.03 in adjusted EPS.
Looking ahead, FEI now expects to earn between $215 million and $230 million in first-quarter revenue, which was reduced by approximately 5% over earlier estimates by unfavorable foreign exchange rates. The company expects GAAP earnings to come in at a range of $0.55 to $0.65 per share for the quarter, and these results will likely be more in line with any adjusted results, since FEI recorded an unusually high $7.8 million in one-time charges for the fourth quarter.
FEI expects its full-year performance for 2015 to result in organic revenue growth of 5% to 9% over 2014, but this growth will take a 4% hit from currency exchange rates, resulting in a likely full-year revenue range of roughly $986 million to $1,025 million. The company is also projecting GAAP earnings of $3.40 to $3.70 for 2015. Both of these ranges fall below Wall Street's expectations of $1,050 million in revenue and $4.03 in EPS, particularly on the bottom line.
