Box (BOX) Q4 Earnings And Revenues Top Estimates, Rise Y/Y

Box, Inc. (NYSE:BOX) reported fiscal fourth-quarter 2020 earnings per share of 7 cents, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3 cents. Moreover, the figure improved 22.5% year over year.

Total revenues came in at $183.59 million, surpassing the consensus mark by 1.1%. Moreover, the top line increased 12% year over year and was above the guided range of $181-$182 million.

Strong demand for its add-on products and high volume of large enterprise deals aided revenue growth during the quarter.

Box is currently working on enriching cloud content management and AI platforms. During the quarter, it made some notable partnerships and deeper integrations with U.S. Forest Service, Macquarie Bank, ATB Financial, Vice Media, Sekisui House in Japan and many more.

The company’s rich technology partner ecosystem will continue to be a strong driving force behind growth.

Let’s delve deeper into the numbers.

Box, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Billings and Deferred Revenues

Billings were $281.9 million, up 19% year over year. Deferred revenues were $423.8 million, up 13% from the year-ago quarter.

Operating Results

Box’s operating expenses (general & administrative, sales &marketing, as well as research & development) of $155.4 million increased 12.5% year over year.

On a non-GAAP basis, the company recorded operating income of $12.3 million versus $8.5 million a year ago. Operating margin was 7% versus 5% in the year-ago quarter.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

At the end of the quarter, cash and cash equivalents, and accounts receivables balance were $195.6 million and $209.4 million compared with $200.9 million and $108.4 million, respectively, at fiscal third-quarter end.

Net cash provided by operations was $15 million and free cash flow was $0.0 million in the fiscal fourth quarter.

Guidance

For the first quarter of fiscal 2021, Box expects revenues between $183 million and $184 million. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the same is pegged at $184.31 million. On a non-GAAP basis, the company projects the bottom line within 4-6 cents. The corresponding Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at 4 cents per share. GAAP loss per share is expected within 23-25 cents.

For fiscal 2021, Box’s revenue guidance is expected within $771-$777 million. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the metric is pegged at $779.72 million. On a non-GAAP basis, it projects earnings per share in the range of 38-44 cents. The consensus mark for the same is pegged at 33 cents. GAAP loss per share is expected in the range of 71-78 cents.

Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

Currently, Box has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked stocks in the broader technology sector include Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:TER) , Atlassian Corporation PLC (NASDAQ:TEAM) and Alteryx, Inc. (NYSE:AYX) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Long-term earnings growth for Itron, Atlassian Corp. and Alteryx is currently projected at 25%, 22.3% and 50.6%, respectively.

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