Monsanto Company (MON) Beats Analyst Estimates on EPS

Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) reported earnings on June 26. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended May 31 (Q3), Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) missed estimates on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

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

Margins contracted across the board.

Revenue details
Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) booked revenue of $4.25 billion. The 15 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ wanted to see revenue of $4.41 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 $1.66. The 21 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $1.61 per share. Non-GAAP EPS of $1.66 for Q3 were 1.8% higher than the prior-year quarter’s $1.63 per share. GAAP EPS of $1.68 for Q3 were 3.4% lower than the prior-year quarter’s $1.74 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 53.2%, 280 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 29.1%, 290 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 21.4%, 80 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. (Margins calculated in GAAP terms.)

Looking ahead
Next quarter’s average estimate for revenue is $2.23 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is -$0.39.

Next year’s average estimate for revenue is $14.91 billion. The average EPS estimate is $4.61.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 2,824 members out of 2,971 rating the stock outperform, and 147 members rating it underperform. Among 537 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 508 give Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) a green thumbs-up, and 29 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) is outperform, with an average price target of $114.08.

The article Monsanto Beats Analyst Estimates on EPS originally appeared on Fool.com.

Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor of Motley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: Long Jan 2015 $70 Calls on Monsanto and Long Jan 2015 $70 Puts on Monsanto.

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