FTSE 100: Index falls as earnings results weigh; pound below $1.33, Bodycote soars
Investing.com -- Shares of Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB) tumbled 11% as the company reported fourth-quarter earnings that failed to meet analyst expectations. The data and analytics firm disclosed a Q4 EPS of $0.30, which was $0.02 lower than the consensus estimate of $0.32. Revenue for the quarter also fell short, coming in at $631.9 million compared to the expected $658.58 million.
The company’s financial performance in the fourth quarter of 2024 saw only a marginal increase of 0.2% in revenue compared to the same period in the previous year, with organic revenue growing by 0.3% on a constant currency basis. However, Dun & Bradstreet’s guidance for fiscal year 2025 suggests a more subdued outlook, with expected EPS of $1.01-$1.07, below the consensus of $1.10, and projected revenue in the range of $2.44-2.5 billion, which also misses the consensus estimate of $2.52 billion.
Analyst Patrick O’Shaughnessy from Raymond (NSE:RYMD) James responded to the results by lowering the price target on Dun & Bradstreet to $14.00 from $19.00 while maintaining a Strong Buy rating. O’Shaughnessy’s comments reflect concerns about the company’s performance and outlook: "Negligible organic revenue growth in 4Q24 may have suffered due to the company’s ongoing strategic review and other theoretically temporary factors, but the company’s inability to foresee this headwind is as big of a concern as the actual result, in our view."
Despite a year of what CEO Anthony Jabbour described as "significant progress," with a 3% organic revenue growth and a 30 basis point expansion in EBITDA margins, investors were clearly unsettled by the fourth-quarter results and the cautious forward-looking statements. The company’s stock repurchase program also saw a halt in activity during the fourth quarter, with no shares repurchased in that period.
Looking ahead, Dun & Bradstreet expects revenues after the impact of foreign exchange to be between $2,440 million to $2,500 million, with organic revenue growth predicted to be in the range of 3.0% to 5.0%. Adjusted EBITDA is projected to be between $955 million to $985 million, and adjusted EPS is anticipated to be in the range of $1.01 to $1.07. However, these forecasts fall short of analysts’ expectations, adding to the bearish sentiment surrounding the stock.
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