Jason Industries (JASN) Misses Q4 EPS by 23c, Revenues Miss; Offers FY19 Revenue Guidance Below Consensus

Jason Industries (NASDAQ: JASN) reported Q4 EPS of ($0.40), $0.23 worse than the analyst estimate of ($0.17). Revenue for the quarter came in at $132 million versus the consensus estimate of $133.4 million.

Key financial results for the fourth quarter 2018 versus the year ago period include:

• Net sales of $132.0 million decreased 9.3 percent and included a negative 1.1 percent impact from the divestiture and planned exit of non-core businesses in the margin expansion program and a negative 0.9 percent from foreign currency translation.
• Operating loss of $0.4 million or 0.3 percent of net sales, increased $1.9 million, impacted by $1.4 million of accelerated depreciation related to the closure of the Richmond, Indiana Acoustics facility and a $1.3 million gain on the sale of the Nuneaton, United Kingdom Seating facility.
• Net loss of $12.4 million, or $0.48 diluted loss per share, increased $14.8 million or $0.53 per share, significantly impacted by a discrete tax benefit in 2017 of $3.8 million from enactment of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act (the “Tax Act”), and incremental tax expense in 2018 of $6.0 million resulting from provisions of the Tax Act.
• Free cash flow was $5.6 million, an increase of $5.5 million, due to lower working capital and capital expenditures.

On an adjusted basis, fourth quarter 2018 results versus the year ago period include:

• Adjusted EBITDA of $10.9 million, or 8.3 percent of net sales, decreased $1.6 million from 8.6 percent of net sales, driven primarily by lower sales volumes with material inflation largely offset by operational improvements and price.
• Adjusted net loss of $12.5 million, or $0.40 Adjusted loss per share, decreased $0.39 per share.

“We delivered our full year guidance on all key measures for a second consecutive year,” said Brian Kobylinski, chief executive officer of Jason. “While our fourth quarter was impacted by select market headwinds and input cost inflation, our team continues to pursue growth opportunities and margin expansion plans to generate cash and drive further leverage reduction.”

GUIDANCE:

Jason Industries sees FY2019 revenue of $565-585 million, versus the consensus of $592.7 million.

“We successfully completed the second year of our turnaround plan, a year in which we improved our operations, upgraded our team, and executed targeted growth initiatives. We continue to simplify our business, generate cash and reduce leverage,” added Kobylinski. "Despite the presence of select end-market headwinds and input cost inflation entering 2019, we remain focused on building upon recent successes.”

For 2019, Jason expects net sales in the range of $565 to $585 million, Adjusted EBITDA of $65 to $68 million and free cash flow of $12 to $16 million, which result in an implied net debt to Adjusted EBITDA range of 5.0 to 4.8 times.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Jason Industries (JASN) click here.

You May Also Be Interested In

• JPMorgan Upgrades Aviva Plc (AV/:LN) (AIVAF) to Overweight
• Axis Capital Limited Downgrades National Aluminium (NACL:IN) to Sell (4)
• Capstone Energy+, Inc. (CEPL) Reports Q2 Loss of $0.03