Littelfuse (NASDAQ: LFUS) reported Q4 EPS of $1.87, $0.14 worse than the analyst estimate of $2.01. Revenue for the quarter came in at $402.3 million versus the consensus estimate of $413.78 million.

• Net sales were $402.3 million, up 32% versus the prior year period. Organic revenue growth was 4%
• Growth by segment versus the prior year:
  • Electronics sales increased 62% (up 7% organically)
  • Automotive sales decreased 3% on global auto production decline of 4% (down 1% organically)
  • Industrial sales decreased 3% due to the exit of the Custom business in 2018 (up 11% organically)
• GAAP diluted EPS was $1.29, up from a loss of $0.48 in the prior year, and includes $14.7 million of after-tax charges primarily related to certain purchase accounting adjustments and integration costs for the IXYS business, and non-operating foreign exchange losses
• Adjusted diluted EPS of $1.87 increased 3% over the prior year
• GAAP effective tax rate was 17.9% and the adjusted effective tax rate was 14.6%
• Cash flow from operations was $79.7 million and free cash flow was $60.9 million
• During the fourth quarter and as of January 29, 2019, the company repurchased approximately 392,000 and 67,000 shares of common stock, respectively, under its share repurchase authorization

“2018 was an exceptional year for us," said Dave Heinzmann, Littelfuse Chief Executive Officer. "Full year organic sales growth of 8% and adjusted EPS growth of 22% reflects the strong execution of our strategy despite softening demand during the fourth quarter. During the year, we made significant progress integrating the company’s largest acquisition, IXYS Corporation, and are seeing the benefits of our expanded portfolio and combined global teams. Across our segments, we captured many strategic wins in our target end markets. We remain confident that our leading technologies, global footprint, close customer relationships, and talented associates position us for continued content growth in excess of the markets we serve.”

GUIDANCE:

Littelfuse sees Q1 2019 EPS of $1.86-$2.00, versus the consensus of $2.34. Littelfuse sees Q1 2019 revenue of $404-416 million, versus the consensus of $429.94 million.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Littelfuse (LFUS) click here.