Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPO) reported Q2 EPS of $0.34, $0.03 better than the analyst estimate of $0.31. Revenue for the quarter came in at $95.6 million versus the consensus estimate of $92.75 million.

“Exponent delivered high-single digit revenue growth in the quarter and continued to expand margins, contributing to a strong first half of 2018. Exponent’s results reflect continuing demand for our expertise and services, supported by positive market trends across several industries, practices and geographies, and consistent with the expected step-down in the ongoing large human factors project in the second quarter,” commented Dr. Catherine Corrigan, President and Chief Executive Officer.

“Exponent’s inter-disciplinary engineering and scientific advice is more valuable than ever as increasingly complex technologies impact every facet of our lives. We continue to grow our global presence by recruiting top experts and identifying new opportunities to expand our proactive and reactive services. Recent examples of engagements include evaluating virtual reality technologies, providing multi-disciplinary expertise to resolve major capital project disputes, and assessing the impact of chemicals on ecosystems and human health. We are encouraged by the positive trends that we are seeing across the business,” stated Dr. Corrigan.

Second Quarter Financial Results

• Total revenues in the second quarter of 2018 grew 9% to $95.6 million, as compared to $87.8 million in the same quarter of 2017.
• Revenues before reimbursements increased 7% to $90.0 million as compared to $84.1 million in the same period one year ago.
• Net income was $18.4 million, or $0.34 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2018, as compared to $13.8 million, or $0.26 per diluted share, in the same period of 2017.
• For comparison purposes, Exponent’s tax rate decreased to 26.1% in the second quarter of 2018, as compared to 38.3% in same period last year, due to the new Tax Legislation.1

Business Outlook

“For the full year 2018, we are reiterating our revenue growth and increasing our margin expectations. Our outlook reflects positive momentum in the business, as well as the expected lower year-over-year revenues from the ongoing human factors project in second half of 2018. We expect revenues before reimbursements to grow in the mid- to high-single digits and EBITDA2 margin to decline by approximately 25 to 50 basis points, as compared to 2017. As previously discussed, we continue to believe that Exponent’s consolidated income tax rate will be approximately 22% to 23% for 2018, after including the estimated tax adjustments associated with share-based awards. This tax rate range is approximately ten percentage points lower than it would have been as a result of the new Tax Legislation1,” commented Richard Schlenker, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

“We have exciting growth opportunities across our practices and industries in both proactive and reactive work on a global basis. We remain committed to our long-term financial goals to produce organic revenue growth, improve profitability, and maintain a strong balance sheet. I am enthusiastic about working with our leadership team to capitalize on these opportunities,” concluded Dr. Corrigan.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Exponent, Inc. (EXPO) click here.