Adient PLC (NYSE:ADNT) reported adjusted earnings per share of 63 cents in fourth-quarter fiscal 2019, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 25 cents. Adjusted earnings per share in the year-ago quarter were $1.30.
During the quarter under review, the company generated net sales of $3,921 million, down from $4,145 million in fourth-quarter fiscal 2018. The top line also missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3,962 million.
During the reported quarter, net sales in the Seat Structures & Mechanisms business totaled $1.92 billion, down from $2.22 billion in fourth-quarter fiscal 2018 due to reduction in auto production in China. The Interior business generated net sales of $1.89 billion, down from $1.99 billion in the prior-year quarter.
Adient PLC Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Adient PLC price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Adient PLC Quote
Segment Results
Adient currently operates through three reportable segments — Americas, which includes North America and South America; Europe, Middle East, and Africa (“EMEA”); and Asia Pacific/China ("Asia").
In the Americas, the company recorded revenues of $1,925 million, down 3.3% year over year. It generated adjusted EBITDA of $64 million in fourth-quarter fiscal 2019 compared with $70 million recorded in the prior-year period. The plunge was attributed to negative business performance, lower volume and mix.
In EMEA, Adient’s quarterly adjusted EBITDA was $47 million compared with $55 million in the prior-year quarter. The downside was due to lower volume and product launch inefficiencies.
In Asia, the company’s adjusted EBITDA was $126 million compared with $146 million in fourth-quarter fiscal 2018. The decline was caused by lower volume and equity income.
Financials
Adient had cash and cash equivalents of $924 million as of Sep 30, 2019 compared with $687 million in the corresponding period of 2018. As of the same date, net debt amounted to $3.7 billion, up from $3.4 billion as of Sep 30, 2018. Debt-to-capital ratio stands at 66.7%. Capital expenditure declined to $118 million from $132 million recorded in the prior-year quarter.
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Adient currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks in the Auto-Tires-Trucks sector are Spartan Motors, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPAR) , SPX Corporation (NYSE:SPXC) and BRP Inc. (NASDAQ:DOOO) , each holding a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Spartan Motors has an estimated earnings growth rate of 85.42% for the current year. The company’s shares have surged 110.7% in a year’s time.
SPX has an expected earnings growth rate of 23.18% for 2019. The company’s shares have surged 57.6% in the past year.
BRP has a projected earnings growth rate of 18.49% for the current year. Its shares have gained around 18.9% over the past year.
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