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AppFolio (APPF) to Report Q1 Earnings: What's in the Offing?

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AppFolio (APPF - Free Report) , a leading provider of cloud-based software solutions for property management and legal industries, is scheduled to report first-quarter 2024 results on Apr 24.

For the first quarter of 2024, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues is pegged at $175.5 million, which suggests growth of approximately 29% from the year-ago quarter. The consensus mark for non-GAAP earnings is pegged at 84 cents per share, unchanged over the past 60 days. The figure indicates a robust improvement from the year-ago quarter’s loss of a penny.

AppFolio’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 72.2%.

In the last reported financial results for the fourth quarter of 2023, AppFolio’s revenues and earnings per share surpassed the respective Zacks Consensus Estimate. Its fourth-quarter earnings of 88 cents per share came in 23.9% above the consensus estimate of 71 cents and marked a robust improvement from the year-ago quarter’s loss of 5 cents.

AppFolio also surpassed top-line estimates with fourth-quarter sales of $171.8 million, beating expectations by 5.6%. Quarterly revenues also grew 39% from the year-ago quarter’s sales of $124.1 million.

Let’s see how things have shaped up before the announcement.

AppFolio, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise AppFolio, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

AppFolio, Inc. price-eps-surprise | AppFolio, Inc. Quote

Factors to Consider

AppFolio's first-quarter performance is likely to have benefited from the robust demand for its property management software suite from real estate professionals, property managers and landlords. The company's innovative solutions offer efficiency, scalability and automation, driving adoption and revenue growth.

AppFolio’s targeted marketing efforts and sustained focus on product enhancements are anticipated to have aided customer growth in the to-be-reported quarter. Its artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled products, including AppFolio Realm and AppFolio Property Manager PLUS, are witnessing rapid adoption, which is driving customer growth.

The company ended 2023 by managing approximately 8.2 million property units from 19,737 customers, which was a robust increase from managing 7.3 million units with 18,441 customers at the end of 2022. We expect the trend to have continued in the first quarter as well. The acquisition of new customers and the retention of existing ones are expected to contribute positively to the company's top-line growth in the to-be-reported quarter.

Additionally, AppFolio’s collective focus on enhancing operational efficiency is likely to have boosted profitability in the first quarter. In the fourth quarter of 2023, the combined sales and marketing, research & development, and general & administrative expenses as a percentage of revenues fell to 37% from 58% in the year-ago quarter due to growth in revenues and a collective focus on operational efficiency.

What Our Model Says

Our proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for AppFolio this season. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an earnings beat. However, that’s not the case here.

Though AppFolio carries a Zacks Rank #3, it has an Earnings ESP of 0.00%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Stocks With the Favorable Combination

Per our model, Vertiv Holdings (VRT - Free Report) , Meta Platforms (META - Free Report) and Qualcomm (QCOM - Free Report) have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat in their upcoming releases.

Vertiv sports a Zacks Rank #1 and has an Earnings ESP of +1.24%. The company is scheduled to report first-quarter 2024 results on Apr 24. Its bottom-line result surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 30.4%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Vertiv’s first-quarter bottom line is pegged at earnings of 37 cents per share, which indicates a robust improvement from the year-ago quarter’s earnings of 24 cents. The consensus mark for revenues stands at $1.64 billion, which calls for a year-over-year increase of 7.6%.

Meta Platforms carries a Zacks Rank #2 and has an Earnings ESP of +0.62%. The company is slated to report first-quarter 2024 results on Apr 24. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the preceding four quarters, with the average surprise being 19.7%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Meta’s fourth-quarter earnings stands at $4.32 per share, which indicates a year-over-year increase of 63.6%. It is estimated to report revenues of $36.25 billion, which implies an increase of approximately 26.6% from the year-ago quarter.

Qualcomm carries a Zacks Rank #2 and has an Earnings ESP of +2.78%. The company is slated to report second-quarter fiscal 2024 results on May 1. Its bottom-line result surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate thrice in the trailing four quarters while missing on one occasion, the average surprise being 5.9%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Qualcomm’s second-quarter bottom line is pegged at earnings of $2.32 per share, which indicates an improvement of 7.9% from the year-ago quarter’s earnings of $2.15. The consensus mark for revenues stands at $9.32 billion, which calls for a year-over-year increase of 0.5%.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

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