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John Bean (JBT) Q3 Earnings Surpass Estimates, Increase Y/Y

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John Bean Technologies Corporation (JBT - Free Report) reported adjusted earnings of $1.27 per share in third-quarter 2022, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.22. The bottom line increased 25% from the prior-year quarter.

On a reported basis, the company’s earnings per share was $1.07 compared with the prior-year quarter’s 91 cents.

Third-quarter revenues of $555 million improved 16% from the prior-year quarter but missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $561 million.

In the reported quarter, the company’s total orders declined 11% year over year to $462 million. Orders in the JBT FoodTech segment dipped 9% year over year to $348 million. The decline in orders was mainly due to continued weakness in Europe. Order levels in North America have also been impacted lately as customers are slowing investment decision-making for equipment due to the ongoing economic uncertainty, including rising interest rates and high energy costs. In the JBT AeroTech segment, orders were down 18% to $113 million from the prior-year quarter due to the timing of large projects.

Backlog in the FoodTech segment increased 22% from the year-ago quarter to $662 million as of Sep 30, 2022. The AeroTech segment’s backlog was $387 million at the end of the reported quarter, up 5% year over year.  The total backlog at the end of the third quarter of 2022 was around $1 billion, up 15% year over year.

Cost and Margins

Cost of sales increased 18% year over year to $396 million during the third quarter. Gross profit was up 12% year over year to $160 million. Gross margin came in at 28.8% compared with the year-earlier quarter’s 29.8%.

Selling, general and administrative expenses were up 11% year over year to $112 million. Adjusted operating profit rose 21% year over year to $54.6 million.

Adjusted operating margin was 9.8% in the quarter compared with the prior-year quarter’s 9.5%. In the quarter under review, adjusted EBITDA was around $74.7 million, reflecting a year-over-year improvement of 15%. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 13.4% compared with the year-ago quarter’s 13.7%.

Segment Performance

JBT FoodTech: Net sales were $399 million compared with $359 million in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted operating profit amounted to $59.2 million compared with the year-ago quarter’s $49.2 million.

JBT AeroTech: Net sales were $157 million, up 32% from the prior-year quarter. The segment’s adjusted operating profit soared 66% year over year to $11.6 million.

Financial Performance

John Bean reported cash and cash equivalents of around $52.6 million at the end of the third quarter of 2022, down from $78.8 million at the end of 2021. The company generated around $74.6 million of cash from operating activities in the nine-month period ended Sep 30, 2022, compared with $163.3 million in the prior-year period.

The company’s total debt was $980 million as of Sep 30, 2022, up from $674 million as of Dec 31, 2021. Its debt levels have gone up due to the acquisitions of Alco and Bevcorp, which were completed in the third quarter of 2022.

Guidance

Revenue growth is projected at 13.25 - 13.75% for the FoodTech segment in 2022. The segment’s operating margin is expected to be between 13% and 13.3%. The AeroTech segment’s revenues are expected to increase approximately 23-24% from 2021. The segment’s operating margin is expected to be in the range of 7.75% to 8.25%.  

JBT updated its 2022 guidance to account for greater-than-expected foreign exchange headwinds as a result of the strong dollar, timing of margin progression at AeroTech, and the addition of Bevcorp. It expects adjusted earnings per share in the range of $4.65 to $4.80 in 2022. The company had earlier provided earnings per share guidance range of $4.90-$5.10. JBT now expects year-over-year consolidated revenue growth of 15.75 – 16.25% for the year.

Price Performance

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John Bean’s shares have fallen 38.9% in the past year compared with the industry’s decline of 45.4%.

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

John Bean carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

Some better-ranked stocks from the Industrial Products sector are Tenaris (TS - Free Report) , Enerpac Tool Group Corp. (EPAC - Free Report) and Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. (RS - Free Report) . While TS and EPAC sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), RS carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Tenaris delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 34%, on average. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company for 2022 indicates year-over-year growth of around 120%. The estimate has moved up 3% in the past 60 days. The TS stock has risen 38% in the past year.

Enerpac Tool delivered a four-quarter earnings surprise of 3.4%, on average. EPAC’s earnings estimates have increased 9% for fiscal 2023 (ending August 2023) in the past 60 days. The estimate indicates year-over-year growth of 44.6%. EPAC’s shares have gained 27.1% in the past year.

Reliance Steel & Aluminum’s earnings surprise in the last four quarters was 13.4%, on average. It has an expected earnings growth rate of 27.9% for fiscal 2022. The earnings estimates have moved up 0.1% over the past 60 days. The RS stock has gained 26% in the past year.

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