TurboTax Maker Intuit Reports Q4 Results

Business and financial management solutions provider Intuit INTU reported earnings on Tuesday, revealing that it made a small profit in the fourth-quarter. Intuit, the maker of the TurboTax program, reported net income of $4 million, or $0.01 per share, for the fourth-quarter ended July 31, compared with a net loss of $57 million, or $0.19 per share, in the fiscal fourth-quarter of 2011. In an earnings call on Tuesday, CEO Brad Smith said that, “Fiscal 2012 was another solid year for Intuit. For the year, we grew revenue 10% and non-GAAP earnings per share 16%. The consistency of our performance is reinforced when you put these results in the context of the past 5 fiscal years where we delivered average annual revenue growth of 10% and non-GAAP earnings per share growth of 16%. Our fiscal 2012 results and our guidance for next year reflect the strength of our core businesses and Intuit's resilience against ongoing fluctuations in the macroeconomic environment.” Wednesday saw the likes of Citi, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, J.P. Morgan and Oppenheimer release reports on Intuit. All seemed to agree that Intuit's advantage is its forward-thinking potential, as well as the fact that it has a solid product in TurboTax. Bank of America, for example, commented that Intuit provides investors with a rare combination of Cloud and mobile opportunities and can be a potential beneficiary of HTML5 adoption longer term. “With minimal EU exposure (~5%), Intuit continues to operate with a shareholder friendly mindset (dividend + share buyback).” Meanwhile, TurboTax grew a full 11 percent in 2012, though that is slightly less than the 13 percent and 15 percent earned in 2011 and 2010 respectively. “Though decelerating, TurboTax FY13 8-10% revenue growth guidance appears appropriate and achievable. Notably, FY13 y/y margin expansion is anticipated on expense streamlining, outsourcing the debit card business (~1.5% revenue growth headwind), and improved efficiency in year 2 of 'free' phone support,” said Oppenheimer. While Intuit hasn't been without its problems, it would appear that it is nicely positioned to take advantage of technological advances in the near future and, with TurboTax solidifying the present, it seems like it has firm footing going forward. On Wednesday, Intuit traded at about $59, up roughly 1 percent.