Astec (ASTE) Earnings Lag Estimates in Q4, Revenues Rise Y/Y
Astec Industries, Inc. ASTE reported fourth-quarter 2022 adjusted earnings per share of 34 cents, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of earnings of 38 cents. The company reported an adjusted loss of 6 cents per share in the prior-year quarter.
Including one-time items, the company reported a loss per share of 4 cents in the quarter under review compared with a loss of 44 cents per share in the year-ago quarter.
Revenues & Backlog
Astec’s revenues increased 31.2% year over year to $350 million in the quarter under review. The top line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $312 million. Domestic sales were up 32.2% year over year and International sales were up 27.4%. The upside was driven by higher volumes, and pricing initiatives.
Given the strong demand, Astec reported a backlog of $913 million in 2022, marking year-over-year growth of 19.7%. Domestic backlog rose 23.3% year over year to $773 million, while international backlog increased 2.8% to $139 million.
Astec Industries, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Astec Industries, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Astec Industries, Inc. Quote
Operating Performance
The adjusted cost of sales rose 30.8% year over year to $279 million in the fourth quarter. The adjusted gross profit was $71 million compared with the year-ago quarter’s $53 million. The adjusted gross margin was 20.3% compared with the year-ago quarter’s 20%.
Adjusted selling, general, administrative and engineering (SG&A) increased 2.5% year over year to around $48 million. The company reported an adjusted operating income of $14.7 million, a notable increase from $0.2 million in the prior year. The adjusted operating margin was 4.2% compared with 0.1% in the prior-year quarter.
Adjusted EBITDA was $22.2 million in the reported quarter, up from the year-ago quarter’s $7 million. The adjusted EBITDA margin was 6.3% compared with 2.6% in the previous year.
Segment Performance
Revenues in the Infrastructure Solutions segment were up 27.1% to $238.4 million from the year-ago quarter. The segment’s adjusted gross profit was $48.2 million compared with the prior-year quarter’s $35.9 million.
The Materials Solutions segment’s total revenues were $110 million in the quarter under review, marking a year-over-year increase of 39%. The segment’s adjusted gross profit was $21.7 million, up 19.8% year over year.
Financial Position
Astec ended 2022 with cash and cash equivalents of $66 million compared with $134.4 million at 2021 end. At the end of 2022, the company’s long-term debt was $78.1 million compared with $0.2 million at the end of 2021.
2022 Performance
Astec reported an adjusted EPS of $1.23 in 2022 compared with $1.38 in the prior year. Earnings missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.26.
Sales were up 16.3% year over year to $1.27 billion. The top line surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.24 billion.
Price Performance
Astec’s shares have lost 2.2% in the past year against the industry's growth of 24.1%.
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Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Astec currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
Some better-ranked stocks from the Industrial Products sector are OI Glass OI, Tenaris TS and Deere & Company DE. OI and TS flaunt a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present, and DE has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
OI Glass has an average trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 16.4%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for OI’s 2023 earnings is pegged at $2.57 per share. This indicates an 11.7% increase from the prior-year reported figure. The consensus estimate for 2023 earnings has moved 16% north in the past 60 days. OI’s shares gained 79.2% in the last year.
Tenaris has an average trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 11.5%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TS’ 2023 earnings is pegged at $6.04 per share. This indicates a 39.5% increase from the prior-year reported figure. The consensus estimate for 2023 earnings has moved north by 17% in the past 60 days. Its shares gained 26.1% in the last year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Deere & Company’s fiscal 2023 earnings per share is pegged at $29.82, suggesting an increase of 28.1% from that reported in the last year. The consensus estimate for fiscal 2023 earnings moved 6% upward in the last 60 days. DE has a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 4.7%. Its shares gained 11.6% in the last year.
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