Sterling Construction Company, Inc. STRL is slated to report first-quarter 2024 results on May 6, after the closing bell.
In the last reported quarter, the company’s earnings topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 30% but the revenues missed the same by 7.8%.
The company’s earnings surpassed expectations in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 20.4%.
The Trend in Estimate Revision
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Sterling’s first-quarter earnings per share has remained unchanged at 82 cents over the past 60 days. The estimated figure suggests a rise of 28.1% from the year-ago quarter’s earnings of 64 cents per share.
Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise
Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. price-eps-surprise | Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. Quote
The consensus estimate for revenues is pegged at $453.3 million, indicating a 12.3% increase from the prior-year period.
Factors at Play
Revenues
The first-quarter 2024 revenues of Sterling are expected to have increased year over year thanks to the solid contributions from its E-infrastructure Solutions, Transportation Solutions and Building Solutions segments. The Transportation Solutions segment is likely to have benefited from strong levels of highway activity and aviation projects. On the other hand, the Building Solutions segment is likely to have gained from solid residential and commercial business growth.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Transportation Solutions and Building Solutions revenues is pegged at $123 million and $106 million, reflecting year-over-year growth of 10.8% and 21.8%, respectively. The consensus mark for E-infrastructure Solutions revenues for the to-be-reported quarter is pegged at $224 million, up from $206 million reported a year ago.
Sterling has been actively executing a strong pipeline of projects for prominent clients engaged in the construction of new distribution centers, data centers and warehouses. Its diversified portfolio of product offerings and services positions it well against the uncertain market backdrop. Also, its business transformation efforts to establish itself as a prominent specialty infrastructure provider are likely to have added to the positives.
Earnings
The bottom line of Sterling is likely to have benefited year over year on the back of a favorable mix, supply-chain improvement and good productivity. Also, its strategic emphasis on lower-risk projects is likely to have added to the uptick.
The company intently focuses on strategically allocating its capital to grasp growth opportunities through strategic acquisitions, investing in capital equipment and managing leverage. These tailwinds are quite likely to have aided Sterling in ensuring a healthy bottom line.
What the Zacks Model Unveils
Our proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for Sterling this time around. The company does not have the right combination of two key ingredients — a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) — to increase the odds of an earnings beat.
Earnings ESP: Sterling has an Earnings ESP of 0.00%. You can uncover the best stocks before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
Zacks Rank: STRL has a Zacks Rank of 3.
Stocks Poised to Beat Earnings
Here are some companies in the Zacks Construction sector, which have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat in the quarter to be reported.
Louisiana-Pacific Corporation LPX currently has an Earnings ESP of +3.56% and a Zacks Rank of 1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
LPX’s earnings for the to-be-reported quarter are expected to gain 232.4% from last year’s quarter’s reported figure. The company reported better-than-expected earnings in three of the last four quarters and missed on the remaining one occasion, the average surprise being 106.2%.
Trex Company, Inc. TREX currently has an Earnings ESP of +3.32% and a Zacks Rank of 2.
TREX’s earnings for the to-be-reported quarter are expected to increase 89.5% from last year’s quarter’s reported figure. The company reported better-than-expected earnings in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 17.1%.
TopBuild Corp. BLD currently has an Earnings ESP of +1.47% and has a Zacks Rank of 2.
BLD’s earnings topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the last four quarters, the average surprise being 12.4%. Earnings for the to-be-reported quarter are expected to increase 4.6% from last year’s quarter’s reported figure.
Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.
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Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (LPX) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. (STRL) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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