Illumina Beats on EPS but GAAP Results Lag

Illumina (Nasdaq: ILMN  ) reported earnings on Feb. 7. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Jan. 1 (Q4), Illumina met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

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

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

Revenue details
Illumina notched revenue of $250.1 million. The 22 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected net sales of $248.7 million. Sales were 4.3% lower than the prior-year quarter's $261.3 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.35. The 21 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $0.30 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.09 for Q4 were 65% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.26 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Figures may be non-GAAP to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 69.4%, 490 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 25.7%, 310 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 4.7%, 1,000 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $260.0 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.32.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.14 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.47.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 685 members out of 731 rating the stock outperform, and 46 members rating it underperform. Among 249 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 242 give Illumina a green thumbs-up, and seven give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Illumina is outperform, with an average price target of $34.26.

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