Jabil Beats on Lower Costs - Analyst Blog
September 29 2011 - 6:00AM
Zacks
Jabil Circuit Inc.
(JBL) reported fourth quarter 2011
earnings of 54 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus
Estimate by a nickel.
Earnings per share (EPS) increased
81.9% year over year from 30 cents (including stock-based
compensation but excluding amortization) reported in the year-ago
quarter. The strong results were primarily driven by solid top-line
growth and operating margin expansion in the quarter.
Operating
Performance
Gross profit was $329.2 million, up
14.5% year over year and gross margin increased 30 basis points to
7.7% from the year-ago quarter. This was primarily driven by the
favourable product mix.
Operating income (including
stock-based compensation) shot up 56.7% year over year to $170.8
million in the reported quarter. Operating margin was 4.0% compared
with 2.8% in the year-earlier quarter. Segment wise, Diversified
manufacturing operating margin was 6.7% in the quarter. Core
operating margin for the Enterprise and Infrastructure segment was
2.6%. High velocity posted a margin of 3.1% in the quarter.
The strong growth in operating
margin was primarily attributable to significant decreases in both
selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expense and research
and development (R&D) expense in the quarter.
SG&A expense decreased 5.2% year
over year to $152.2 million, while R&D was down 6.4% year over
year to $6.2 million in the quarter.
Net income increased 1.6% year over
year to $219.5 million. Net margin was 2.8% in the quarter versus
1.7% in the year-ago period.
Revenue
Revenue increased 11.0% year over
year to $4.28 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011 and was in line
with the high end of management’s guided range of $4.1 billion to
$4.3 billion. This was well above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of
$4.18 billion. Higher quarterly revenues were attributable to
market share gains, new customer wins and strong growth from
emerging markets.
Diversified manufacturing segment
revenue (40.0% of the total revenue) increased 10.0% sequentially.
Enterprise and Infrastructure segment revenue (32.0% of the total
revenue) was up 1.0% quarter over quarter. However, high velocity
segment (28.0% of the total revenue) decreased 9.0%
sequentially.
Balance Sheet & Cash
Flow
Exiting the fourth quarter,
cash and cash equivalents were $888.6 million, down from $911.1
million in the prior quarter.
Jabil’s debt level remained flat
sequentially in the fourth quarter. Total debt, as of August 31,
2011, was $1.19 billion.
The company’s net cash balance (cash
less debt including the current portion) was a deficit of $298.1
million or $1.36 per share in the fourth quarter of 2011, compared
with $276.5 million or $1.24 per share in the third quarter of
2011.
Cash flow from operations was $303.6
million in the quarter. The sales cycle was 8 days while annualized
inventory turns were 7 in the quarter. Capital expenditures were
$138.0 million, while depreciation was $84.9 million. Core return
on invested capital was 30.0% in the reported quarter.
Guidance
Jabil expects net revenue in the
range of $4.3 billion to $4.5 billion for the first quarter of
2012. Diversified Manufacturing is expected to grow 3.0%
sequentially, Enterprise and Infrastructure is anticipated to
remain flat year over year, while High Velocity is forecasted to
increase 6.0% on a sequential basis in the first quarter.
Jabil forecasts operating income for
the first quarter of 2012 (excluding stock-based compensation) in
the $185.0 million to $205.0 million range (4.3% to 4.5% of the
total revenue).
Jabil expects non-GAAP earnings per
share to be between 62 cents and 70 cents for the first quarter.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate is currently pegged at 55 cents (Zacks
Consensus Estimate includes stock-based compensation).
Recommendation
Jabil provided a robust first
quarter outlook, anticipating strong top-line growth on the back of
a mix shift toward high-margin diversified manufacturing systems.
We believe Jabil remains well positioned to grow from the
increasing adoption of clean technology and alternative energy.
Moreover, the lean cost structure, increasing cash flow generation
capabilities and an improving balance sheet are positives for the
stock.
However, the company faces strong
competition from Flextronics Inc.
(FLEX) and Sanmina-SCI Corp.
(SANM), which along with the worsening
economic conditions in Europe and the U.S. may hurt its
profitability going forward.
We maintain an Outperform rating on
Jabil over the long term (6–12 months). Currently, Jabil has a
Zacks #4 Rank, which implies a Sell rating on a short-term
basis.
FLEXTRONIC INTL (FLEX): Free Stock Analysis Report
JABIL CIRCUIT (JBL): Free Stock Analysis Report
SANMINA-SCI CP (SANM): Free Stock Analysis Report
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