Johnson Outdoors (NASDAQ:JOUT) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.74 EPS

Johnson Outdoors (NASDAQ:JOUT) posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday. The company reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.74, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $189.73 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $186.19 million. Johnson Outdoors had a positive return on equity of 2.52% and a negative net margin of 2.33%.

Here are the key takeaways from Johnson Outdoors’ conference call:

• Third-quarter sales increased 5%, while operating income rose to $18.3 million from $7.3 million a year earlier. Approximately $15 million of tariff refunds significantly contributed to the earnings improvement.
• The fishing and diving businesses showed solid momentum, supported by healthy demand for Minn Kota trolling motors and strong regulator and buoyancy-compensator sales at SCUBAPRO.
• The earnings benefit from tariff refunds is unlikely to repeat, and underlying third-quarter gross margin was modestly below the prior year due to higher raw-material and electronic-component costs.
• The camping and watercraft business faced a challenging quarter because of weak marketplace conditions, while inventory increased approximately $24.5 million year over year to $188.3 million.
• Johnson Outdoors remains debt-free, continues to pay a meaningful dividend, and reported year-to-date pretax profit of $32.2 million versus a $4.3 million loss in the prior-year period.

Johnson Outdoors Price Performance

Johnson Outdoors stock opened at $48.22 on Friday. Johnson Outdoors has a one year low of $34.69 and a one year high of $53.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $505.35 million, a PE ratio of -56.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 0.81. The business’s fifty day moving average is $45.89 and its 200 day moving average is $46.94.

Johnson Outdoors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 16th were issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 16th. Johnson Outdoors’s dividend payout ratio is presently -86.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson Outdoors

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson Outdoors by 22.9% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 41,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,749,000 after acquiring an additional 7,668 shares during the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Johnson Outdoors by 92.1% during the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 68,157 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,893,000 after purchasing an additional 32,668 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Johnson Outdoors by 74.4% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 100,125 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,250,000 after purchasing an additional 42,715 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP boosted its holdings in Johnson Outdoors by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 21,520 shares of the company’s stock worth $914,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its position in Johnson Outdoors by 23.5% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 7,769 shares of the company’s stock worth $330,000 after purchasing an additional 1,480 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.05% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Johnson Outdoors in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Johnson Outdoors from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Johnson Outdoors Company Profile

Johnson Outdoors Inc is a diversified outdoor recreation company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of gear and equipment for marine and land-based activities. The company operates through two primary segments: the Marine Electronics & Boat Group and the Outdoor Products Group. Its marine offerings include electric motors and anchors under the Minn Kota® brand, fish-finding and sonar systems under the Humminbird® brand, and a lineup of recreational watercraft under the Old Town® and Ocean Kayak® names.