CoreLogic, Inc. CLGX reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter 2019 results.
Adjusted earnings of 77 cents per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 8.5% and improved 60.4% year over year. Revenue growth, better business mix, and ongoing productivity and cost efficiency programs benefited the bottom line.
Revenues of $426 million beat the consensus estimate by 1.5% and increased 5.6% year over year. Revenues benefited from the company’s core mortgage and real estate solutions, improved U.S. mortgage unit volumes and an insurance-related acquisition in 2018. Benefits were partially offset by impacts of appraisal management company (AMC) transformation and divestment of technology-related platforms.
Notably, shares of CoreLogic have gained 32% over the past year, outperforming the 17.6% growth of the industry it belongs to.
Other Quarterly Numbers
Underwriting & Workflow Solutions (“UWS”) revenues came in at $259 million, up 8% year over year. Property Intelligence & Risk Management Solutions ("PIRM") revenues of $171 million increased 2% year over year.
Adjusted EBITDA of $129 million improved 26% year over year. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 30% compared with 25% in the prior year. Operating income of $56 million was up 95% and operating margin increased 600 basis points (bps) to 13%.
The company exited the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $105.2 million compared with $88.2 million at the end of prior quarter. Long-term debt was $1.6 billion at the end of the quarter.
The company generated $117.1 million of cash from operating activities and CapEx was $28.4 million. During the reported quarter, it repurchased 625,000 shares for $25 million.
2020 Outlook
CoreLogic expects revenues in the range of $1.69-$1.73 billion. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at $1.73 billion. Adjusted EPS is anticipated in the range of $2.8-$3. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at $2.9.
Adjusted EBITDA is expected in the range of $500-$525 million. The company expects adjusted EBITDA margin to be 30%.
Zacks Rank & Other Stocks to Consider
CoreLogic currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Some other top-ranked stocks in the broader Zacks Business Services sector are S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) SPGI, NV5 Global (NASDAQ:NVEE) and TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Long-term earnings (three to five years) growth rate for S&P Global, NV5 Global and TransUnion is estimated at 10%, 20% and 12.9%, respectively.
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