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Standard Motor (SMP) Q4 Earnings Miss Estimates, Fall Y/Y

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Standard Motor Products (SMP - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2023 adjusted earnings of 37 cents per share, which fell from 69 cents in the prior-year quarter and lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 62 cents.

Total revenues fell from $308.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2022 to $290.8 million in the quarter under review. The reported figure also lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $314 million. Gross profit fell to $81.5 million from the year-ago quarter’s $89.6 million. Operating income declined to $9.95 million from $15.71 million reported in the year-ago quarter.

Segmental Results

During the reported quarter, revenues from the Vehicle Control segment totaled $178.6 million, down 5.9% year over year and missed our estimate of $182.3 million. Customer order patterns and softness in the marketplace resulted in the decline. Operating income was $17.4 million, down from the prior-year quarter’s $23.1 million.

Revenues from the Engineered Solutions segment totaled $67.5 million, up 6.7% year over year. The metric surpassed our estimate of $65.6 million. Operating income was $1.04 million, down from the prior-year quarter’s $4.01 million.

Revenues from the Temperature Control segment came in at $44.6 million, dropping from the year-ago quarter’s $55.1 million, as well as missing our projection of $66.6 million due to lower demand for this seasonal product category. The segment registered an operating loss of $3.27 million against the operating income of $0.65 million reported in the year-ago period.

Operating loss from the Other segment was $3.95 million, wider than $3.29 million recorded in the year-ago quarter.

Financial Position

Standard Motor had $32.5 million in cash as of Dec 31, 2023 compared with $21.2 million as of Dec 31, 2022.

Long-term debt totaled $151.2 million as of Dec 31, 2023 compared with $184.6 million as of Dec 31, 2022.

Net cash inflow from operating activities totaled $144.3 million at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023. SG&A expenses declined 2.4% to $70.3 million.

The company approved a quarterly dividend of 29 cents per share, which will be paid out on Mar 1, 2024, to stockholders of record as of Feb 15, 2024.

Guidance 2024

For full-year 2024, the company expects sales growth to be flat to low single-digit. Standard Motor expects adjusted EBITDA in the range of 9-9.5% of total revenues. The company anticipates around $7-$8 million of added costs in 2024 due to increased rent and redundancy expenses. It expects a capital expenditure of $25 million.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

SMP currently has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).

Some better-ranked players in the auto space are Modine Manufacturing Company (MOD - Free Report) , General Motors Company (GM - Free Report) and Oshkosh Corporation (OSK - Free Report) . MOD & GM sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) each, while OSK carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MOD’s 2024 sales and earnings suggests year-over-year growth of 4% and 67.2%, respectively. The earnings per share (EPS) estimates for 2024 and 2025 have improved 22 cents each in the past 30 days.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GM’s 2024 sales and earnings suggests year-over-year growth of 1.8% and 17.2%, respectively. The EPS estimates for 2024 and 2025 have improved $1.27 and $1.70, respectively, in the past 30 days.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for OSK’s 2024 sales and earnings suggests year-over-year growth of 6.7% and 2.9%, respectively. The EPS estimates for 2024 and 2025 have improved 9 cents and 40 cents, respectively, in the past 30 days.

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