American Axle (AXL) Q1 Earnings Top Estimates, Revenues Miss

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:AXL) posted adjusted earnings of 36 cents per share in the first quarter of 2019, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 35 cents. In first-quarter 2018, adjusted earnings were 98 cents.

During the quarter under review, the company reported net income of $41.6 million compared with $89.4 million a year ago. Improved operational performance along with supporting customers on important program launches aided American Axle to witness an increase in earnings.

Sales increased to $1.72 billion, marking a plunge from the year-ago figure of $1.86 billion. The top line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.74 billion.

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

American Axle’s SG&A (Selling, General & Administrative) expenses were $90.7 million for first-quarter 2019 in comparison with $97.3 million in the prior-year quarter.

Gross profit decreased to $222 million in first-quarter 2019 from $316 million a year ago. Operating income declined to $94 million from $176 million.

Financial Position

American Axle had cash and cash equivalents of $252 million as of Mar 31, 2019, down from $476 million as of Dec 31, 2018. Net long-term debt was $3.7 billion as of Mar 31, 2019, similar to the figure recorded on Dec 31, 2018.

Cash outflow from operations for the first three months of 2019 was $80.2 million in comparison with the prioryear’s inflow of $67 million. At the end of the first three months of 2019, American Axle’s adjusted free cash outflow was $204 million compared with $63.5 million for the same period of last year.

Outlook

In second-quarter 2019, American Axle projects sales to be $1.75-$1.8 billion and adjusted EBITDA to be $270-$280 million

For 2019, the company expects sales of $7.3-$7.4 billion and adjusted EBIDTA of $1.2-$1.25 billion.

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

American Axle currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A few better-ranked stocks in the auto space are PACCAR, Inc. (NASDAQ:PCAR) , Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:ALSN) and Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) , each currently carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

PACCAR has an expected long-term growth rate of 8.4%. The company’s stock has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings in 2019 being revised 3.9% upward over the past 30 days.

Allison Transmission has an expected current-year growth rate of 10%. The company’s stock has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings in 2019 being revised 2.4% upward over the past 30 days.

Ford has an expected long-term growth rate of 8.1%. The company’s stock has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings in 2019 being revised 14% upward over the past 30 days.

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