Dj Western Digital Corp. Stock Underperforms Tuesday When Compared To Competitors

BCE Inc. BCE reported third-quarter 2024 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of C$0.75 (55 cents) compared with C$0.81 in the prior-year quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate was pegged at 57 cents.

Stay up-to-date with all quarterly releases: See Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Quarterly total operating revenues dipped 1.8% year over year to C$5,971 million ($4,377 million). The consensus estimate was pegged at $4,450 million. The decline is attributed to a 14.3% fall in Product revenues, which totaled C$685 million, amid 0.1% growth in Service revenues, which came in at C$5,286 million.

In response to the results, BCE’s shares tanked 2.3% and closed the trading session at $28.07 on Nov. 7.

Segmental Results

The company has combined its Bell Wireless and Bell Wireline operating segments to form a segment called Bell CTS. BCE now reports its segment results under Bell CTS and Bell Media.

Bell CTS’ operating revenues went down 3.3% year over year to C$5,280 million due to soft demand trends in product and service revenues.

Within the Bell CTS segment, Service revenues fell 1.4% to C$4,595 million, hurt by ongoing declines in legacy services but bolstered by growth in mobile phone and business solutions services.

Product revenues plunged 14.3% to C$685 million due to lower consumer electronics revenues from The Source. Also, lower demand for consumer electronics, fewer mobile device sales and reduced telecom equipment sales to large business customers contributed to the decrease.

BCE, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

BCE, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | BCE, Inc. Quote

Postpaid mobile phone net subscriber activations were 333,111, down 76.8% year over year. The number of postpaid mobile phone net subscriber activations decreased due to rising mobile phone postpaid customer churn owing to growing competitive market activity and promotional offers on postpaid plans.

Prepaid mobile phone net subscriber activations were 69,085 up 187.3% year over year. The primary driver behind the expansion was an 18.7% rise in gross activations due to augmented retail distribution and effective Lucky Mobile marketing strategies coupled with a lower customer churn rate, which jumped 44 basis points to 4.66%.

Bell Media revenues grew 10.1% year over year to C$782 million, primarily driven by a 19% surge in digital revenues. Its strategy to enhance its digital footprint included acquiring OUTEDGE Media Canada and bringing NBCUniversal channels like USA Network and Oxygen True Crime to the Canadian market. With subscriber revenues up by 13.5%, Bell Media continues to capture market share in streaming, solidifying Crave’s reputation as a prime destination for premium content.

Other Details

Adjusted EBITDA in the reported quarter grew 2.1% to C$2,722 million. This increase, along with a cost-cutting strategy that drove a 4.8% reduction in operating expenses, brought BCE to its highest adjusted EBITDA margin in more than 30 years. The adjusted EBITDA margin improved to 45.6%, up from 43.9% in the prior-year quarter.

Cash Flow

BCE generated C$1,842 million of cash from operating activities compared with C$1,961 million in the prior-year quarter. The free cash flow was C$832 million compared with C$754 million a year ago due to higher cash flows from operating activities.

BCE Revises 2024 Revenue Guidance

Due to lower-than-expected product revenues and ongoing wireless pricing pressures, BCE revised its 2024 revenue guidance from 0-4% growth to a decline of about 1.5%.

Despite the revised guidance, management reiterated all other financial targets for 2024. It continues to anticipate adjusted EBITDA growth between 1.5% and 4.5%. Free cash flow growth is projected to be in the band of (3)-(11)%. The annualized common dividend per share is estimated to be C$3.99.

BCE’s Zacks Rank

BCE currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Performance of Other Companies

Itron Inc ITRI reported non-GAAP EPS of $1.84 for third-quarter 2024, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 62.8%. The company reported earnings of 98 cents in the prior-year quarter.

Shares of ITRI surged 77% in the past year.

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. WTS reported third-quarter 2024 adjusted EPS of $2.03 compared with $2.04 in the prior-year quarter. The bottom line topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2%.

Shares of WTS have gained 5.2% in the past year.

Western Digital Corporation WDC reported first-quarter fiscal 2025 non-GAAP earnings of $1.78 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.3%. The company incurred a loss of $1.76 per share in the prior-year quarter.

Shares of WDC have gained 51.1% in the past year.

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Telefonica, S.A. TEF reported a third-quarter 2024 net income of €10 million, which plummeted 98.1% year over year. Furthermore, basic earnings per share (EPS) were €0.1 (12 cents) compared with €0.09 in the year-ago quarter. The bottom line surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 50%.

Stay up-to-date with all quarterly releases: See Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Quarterly revenues fell 2.9% year over year to €10,023 million ($11,061 million). However, the top line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.1%. Currency volatility notably impacted TEF’s revenues, with a €429 million reduction due to foreign exchange rate movements.

Results by Business Units

Telefonica Espana: Quarterly revenues in Spain increased 1% year over year on a reported basis to €3,182 million, driven by momentum in mobile handset sales and retail sales. The quarterly adjusted EBITDA grew 1% to €1,155 million due to an increase in customer satisfaction. The company achieved the highest customer additions in six years and a Net Promoter Score of 34 points. With churn rates at a historic low of 0.8%, the segment is poised for continued growth, as customer satisfaction and loyalty contribute to sustainable revenues.

Telefonica Deutschland: Quarterly revenues declined 1.6% to €2,131 million, driven by sluggish trends across the mobile business amid growth in the fixed business. The quarterly adjusted EBITDA margin was 33.1%. Capital expenditure (CapEx) rose 6.3% to €332 million in the quarter.

VirginMedia-O2 U.K.: Quarterly revenues fell 0.7% to €3,197 million. The quarterly adjusted EBITDA margin was 36.6%. CapEx inched up 0.6% to €665 million in the quarter.

Telefonica SA Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Telefonica SA price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Telefonica SA Quote

Telefonica Brasil: Quarterly revenues in Brazil decreased 6.4% to €2,308 million, impacted by currency depreciation. A slowdown in the mobile and fixed businesses led to the contraction. The quarterly adjusted EBITDA declined 5.9% to €1,030 million. The company’s operations in Brazil were affected by the depreciation of the Brazilian real, which also led to a €159 million reduction in EBITDA. CapEx decreased 15.9% to €414 million in the quarter.

Telefonica Infra (Telxius): The unit, responsible for next-generation infrastructure deployment, ended the period with 24 million premises connected with fibre. Telxius, Telefonica’s submarine cable company, experienced a 12% increase in traffic over the first nine months with a high profitability ratio of 48.9%.

Telefonica Tech: The segment reported revenue growth of 9.5% year over year in the first nine months to €1,453 million, supported by a 40% increase in orders. Quarterly revenues increased 6.3% year over year to €470 million. The healthy growth in bookings was enhanced by significant private-sector contracts in finance, healthcare and manufacturing. This growth adds high-value, recurring contracts to the backlog, supporting long-term revenue sustainability.

Telefonica Hispam: Quarterly revenues in the Telefonica Hispam segment decreased 6.2% to €2,100 million. The quarterly adjusted EBITDA margin was 17.9%. CapEx fell 11.1% to €169 million in the quarter.

Other Details

Quarterly adjusted EBITDA was €2,946 million, down 11.5% year over year. Operating income was €740 million in the quarter under review, which decreased 30.1%.

Cash Flow & Liquidity

For the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2024, Telefonica generated €7,120 million of net cash from operating activities compared with €8,238 million generated in the comparable period in the prior year. The free cash flow for the same period totaled €1,030 million.

As of Sept. 30, 2024, the company had €6,325 million in cash and cash equivalents, with €32,180 million of non-current financial liabilities.

2024 Outlook Reconfirmed

The company expects revenues to grow approximately 1%. EBITDA is expected to rise 1% to 2%. CapEx-to-sales ratio is likely to be up to 13% and a growth in free cash flow of above 10%.

In addition, the company reiterated the cash dividend of €0.30 per share, payable on December 2024 (€0.15 per share) and June 2025 (€0.15 per share).

TEF’s Zacks Rank

Telefonica currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Performance of Other Companies

Itron Inc ITRI reported non-GAAP EPS of $1.84 for third-quarter 2024, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 62.8%. The company reported earnings of 98 cents in the prior-year quarter.

Shares of ITRI surged 77% in the past year.

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. WTS reported third-quarter 2024 adjusted EPS of $2.03 compared with $2.04 in the prior-year quarter. The bottom line topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2%.

Shares of WTS have gained 5.2% in the past year.

Western Digital Corporation WDC reported first-quarter fiscal 2025 non-GAAP earnings of $1.78 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.3%. The company incurred a loss of $1.76 per share in the prior-year quarter.

Shares of WDC have gained 51.1% in the past year.

Note: €1 = $1.09893 (period average from July 1, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2024) €1 = $1.11602 (as of Sept. 30, 2024)

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PTC Inc PTC reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 non-GAAP earnings per share (EPS) of $1.54, up 28% year over year. The figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 7.7%.

Stay up-to-date with all quarterly releases: See Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Quarterly revenues soared 15% year over year to $627 million. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues was pegged at $620.5 million. The top line neared the high end of PTC’s guidance, driven by continued demand for its product lifecycle management (PLM) and computer-aided design (CAD) solutions.

As part of its commitment to enhancing shareholder value, PTC announced a new $2 billion share repurchase authorization extending through Sept. 30, 2027. It plans to buy back nearly $300 million of its stock in fiscal 2025, with purchases commencing in the fiscal first quarter. In addition, PTC intends to retire $500 million in senior notes due in the fiscal second quarter of 2025.

In response to the results, shares of PTC gained 4.2% in trading on Nov. 6 and closed the session at $198.04. The company's shares have rallied 33.7% in the past year compared with the sub-industry's growth of 22.1%.

Top Line Details

Recurring revenues of $582.4 million rose 16.4% year over year. Perpetual licenses increased 21% to $9.9 million.

PTC Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

PTC Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | PTC Inc. Quote

Revenues by License, Support and Services

License revenues (38.2% of total revenues) were $239.5 million, up 29.9% from the year-ago quarter’s figure.

Support and cloud services revenues (56.3%) of $352.9 million increased 8.9%.

Professional services revenues (5.5%) were $34.2 million, down 10.4% year over year.

Revenues by Product Group

PLM and CAD businesses continue to witness healthy momentum. In the fiscal fourth quarter, PLM revenues were $408 million, rising 14% year over year. CAD revenues were $219 million, up 16% from a year ago.

ARR Performance

Annualized recurring revenues (ARR) were $2.255 billion, up 14% year over year. At constant currency, ARR was $2.207 billion, up 12% year over year. The uptick was driven by strong performance across all divisions and regions.

In the fiscal fourth quarter, PLM and CAD ARR were $1,387 million and $868 million, rising 15% and 13% year over year, respectively.

Operating Details

Non-GAAP gross margin came in at 84.4% compared with 81.6% in the prior-year period.

Total operating expenses increased 3.3% year over year to $319.8 million.

Operating income on a non-GAAP basis rose 37.8% year over year to $276.6 million.

Operating margin on a non-GAAP basis increased 740 basis points on a year-over-year basis to 44.1%.

Balance Sheet & Cash Flow

As of Sept. 30, 2024, cash and cash equivalents were $266 million compared with $288 million as of Sept. 30, 2024.

Total debt, net of deferred issuance costs, was $1.748 billion as of Sept. 30, 2024, compared with $1.695 billion as of Sept. 30, 2023.

Cash provided by operating activities was $98 million compared with the prior-year quarter’s figure of $50 million.

The free cash flow was $94 million compared with $44 million in the year-ago quarter.

Guidance

For the first quarter fiscal 2025, PTC estimates revenues in the $540-$570 million band. Non-GAAP EPS is projected in the range of 75 cents to 95 cents. Cash from operations is expected to be $234 million, and free cash flow is forecasted to be $230 million.

Revenues for fiscal 2025 are projected in the range of $2,505-$2,605 billion, indicating a rise of 9-13% year over year. Non-GAAP EPS is estimated in the $5.60-$6.30 band, suggesting a rise of 10-24%.

For fiscal 2025, cash from operations is projected between $850 million and $865 million, indicating a rise of 13% to 15% on a year-over-year basis. The free cash flow is forecasted in the $835-$850 million band, suggesting a 14% to 16% increase.

PTC projects 9% to 10% growth in ARR on a constant currency basis for fiscal 2025.

PTC’s Zacks Rank

Currently, PTC carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Performance of Other Companies

Itron Inc ITRI reported non-GAAP EPS of $1.84 for third-quarter 2024, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 62.8%. The company reported earnings of 98 cents in the prior-year quarter.

Shares of ITRI gained 77% in the past year.

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. WTS reported third-quarter 2024 adjusted EPS of $2.03 compared with $2.04 in the prior-year quarter. The bottom line topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2%.

Shares of WTS have gained 5.2% in the past year.

Western Digital Corporation WDC reported first-quarter fiscal 2025 non-GAAP earnings of $1.78 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.3%. The company incurred a loss of $1.76 per share in the prior-year quarter.

Shares of WDC have gained 51.1% in the past year.

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With a market cap of $22.5 billion, San Jose, California-based Western Digital Corporation is a leading player in the data storage industry. The company designs and manufactures a wide range of hard disk drives (HDDs), solid-state drives (SSDs), and flash-based storage solutions for various applications, including personal computing, enterprise solutions, and consumer electronics.

Shares of the leading data storage manufacturer have outperformed the broader market over the past 52 weeks. WDC has climbed 55% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has gained 32.6%. In 2024, WDC stock surged 27.3%, compared to SPX's 21.2% YTD gain.

Narrowing the focus, Western Digital stock has also outpaced the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund's 32.1% rise over the past 52 weeks and 17.9% increase on a YTD basis.

Cirrus Logic Inc. CRUS reported second-quarter fiscal 2025 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.25, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 10.8%. Also, the bottom line expanded 25% from the prior-year quarter's earnings of $1.8.

Stay up-to-date with all quarterly releases: See Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Quarterly revenues of $541.9 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.2% and soared 12.6% year over year. The top line was close to the high end of CRUS’ projected guidance range. The company attributes this strong revenue growth to heightened demand for products in the smartphone sector and significant expansion in the laptop market.

The company’s largest customer accounted for 90% of total revenues in the fiscal second quarter.

Cirrus Logic, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Cirrus Logic, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Cirrus Logic, Inc. Quote

Segment Details

This Texas-based company rearranged its reportable segments and created separate categories — High-Performance Mixed-Signal and Audio — in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021. Cirrus Logic is expanding into other applications such as laptops, gaming, tablets and AR/VR.

Cirrus Logic’s High-Performance Mixed-Signal segment includes a few of its non-audio products. It contributed 42% to total revenues in the fiscal second quarter. Revenues from the same division rose 13.6% year over year to $225.3 million. We estimated the metric to be $216 million.

The Audio segment’s sales grew 11.9% to $316.6 million and contributed 58% to total revenues. Our estimate was $304 million for the segment.

Margins

Non-GAAP gross margin expanded 90 basis points year over year to 52.2%. The uptick is driven by a favorable product mix strategy amid higher supply chain expenses.

Cirrus Logic’s non-GAAP operating expenses rose 10.8% year over year to $126.8 million due to increasing variable compensation, employee-related costs and rising product development costs.

Non-GAAP operating income of $156.2 million grew 17.9% year over year. Non-GAAP operating profit margin increased to 28.8% from 27.5%.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

The company exited the fiscal second quarter with cash and marketable securities of $478.3 million compared with $312.4 million as of Sept. 23, 2023.

As of Sept. 28, 2024, accounts receivables were $324.1 million compared with $190.1 million as of June 29, 2024.

In the fiscal second quarter, CRUS generated $8.2 million of net cash from operations. In the prior-year quarter, it utilized $22.7 million of net cash from operations. Free cash flow was $5.5 million in the quarter under review.

The company repurchased 356,432 shares worth $50 million in the reported quarter. As of Sept. 28, 2024, it had $224.1 million worth of shares under its existing share repurchase authorization.

Fiscal Q3 Outlook

Management projects revenues between $480 million and $540 million.

Combined GAAP R&D and SG&A are anticipated to be between $148 million and $154 million, respectively.

The GAAP gross margin is expected to be in the range of 51-53%.

Non-GAAP operating expenses are estimated to be in the band of $124-$130 million.

CRUS’ Zacks Rank

Cirrus Logic currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Performance of Other Companies

Itron Inc ITRI reported non-GAAP EPS of $1.84 for third-quarter 2024, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 62.8%. The company reported earnings of 98 cents in the prior-year quarter.

Shares of ITRI gained 77% in the past year.

Watts Water Technologies, Inc. WTS reported third-quarter 2024 adjusted EPS of $2.03 compared with $2.04 in the prior-year quarter. The bottom line topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2%.

Shares of WTS have gained 5.2% in the past year.

Western Digital Corporation WDC reported first-quarter fiscal 2025 non-GAAP earnings of $1.78 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.3%. The company incurred a loss of $1.76 per share in the prior-year quarter.

Shares of WDC have gained 51.1% in the past year.

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