Expeditors International of Washington Increases Sales but Misses Estimates on Earnings

Expeditors International of Washington (Nasdaq: EXPD  ) reported earnings on Feb. 26. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Expeditors International of Washington beat slightly on revenues and missed estimates on earnings per share.

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

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

Revenue details
Expeditors International of Washington logged revenue of $1.53 billion. The 15 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ wanted to see net sales of $1.51 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were the same as the prior-year quarter's.

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 $0.40. The 19 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.43 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.40 for Q4 were 7.0% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.43 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 28.3%, much better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 8.4%, 190 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 5.5%, 70 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $1.45 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.42.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $6.36 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.85.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 511 members out of 533 rating the stock outperform, and 22 members rating it underperform. Among 173 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 170 give Expeditors International of Washington a green thumbs-up, and three give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Expeditors International of Washington is outperform, with an average price target of $43.46.

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