Solera Tops Q4 Views

reported upbeat results for its fiscal fourth quarter on Tuesday. The Westlake, Texas-based company reported a quarterly net loss of $146.8 million, or $2.19 per share, versus net income of $8.8 million, or $0.13 per share, in the year-ago period. Cash EPS climbed to $0.81 from $0.70. Its revenue rose 10.9 percent year-over-year to $297.1 million from $267.9 million. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.80 per share on revenue of $288.9 million. EMEA revenue rose 0.7 percent to $136.4 million in the latest quarter, while Americas revenue jumped 21.3 percent to $160.7 million. Revenue from insurance company customers gained 13.9 percent year-over-year to $111.8 million, while revenue from collision repair facility customers fell 9.3 percent to $69.8 million. Revenue from independent assessors slipped 17.9 percent to $15.9 million, while revenue from service, repair and maintenance facilities customers, jumped 31.1 percent to $39.2 million. Revenue from automotive recyclers, salvage, dealerships and other customers surged 38.8 percent year-over-year to $60.4 million in the latest quarter. Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter rose 5 percent year-over-year to $116.0 million, while adjusted EBITDA margin shrank 221 basis points to 39.1 percent. The company's board approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.225 per share. "We were pleased with our fourth quarter revenue of $297 million, which was up 7.5% on an organic constant currency basis and in-line with our expectations," said Tony Aquila, Solera's founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Solera shares gained 1.09 percent to close at $41.71 yesterday.