Curtiss-Wright Beats Up on Analysts Yet Again

Curtiss-Wright (NYSE: CW  ) reported earnings on Feb. 14. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Curtiss-Wright met expectations on revenue and beat expectations on earnings per share.

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

Gross margin increased, operating margin dropped, and net margin expanded.

Revenue details
Curtiss-Wright notched revenue of $516 million. The eight analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ hoped for revenue of $512 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 7.3% higher than the prior-year quarter's $523.4 million.

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

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.73. The seven earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.68 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.84 for Q3 were 6.3% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.79 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 33.4%, 20 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 10.9%, 10 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 7.1%, 10 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $574.7 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.84.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $2.07 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.76.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 166 members rating the stock outperform and one member rating it underperform. Among 70 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 69 give Curtiss-Wright a green thumbs-up, and one gives it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Curtiss-Wright is outperform, with an average price target of $38.50.

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