Booz Allen (BAH) Beats Q4 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corporation BAH reported strong fourth-quarter fiscal 2020 results, with earnings and revenues beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Adjusted earnings per share (excluding 25 cents from non-recurring items) of 73 cents beat the consensus mark by 4.3% and improved 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. The bottom line benefited from top-line growth, strong contract level performance and operational management.
Shares of the company have gained 21.3% in the past year compared with 11.6% growth of the industry.
Revenues, Backlog & Headcount Increase Y/Y
Total revenues of $1.97 billion surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.5% and increased 10.6% year over year. Revenues, excluding billable expenses, were $1.36 billion that increased 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Billable expenses accounted for 31% of revenues.
Total backlog increased 7.3% from the prior-year quarter’s figure to $20.7 billion. Funded backlog of $3.42 billion fell slightly year over year. Unfunded backlog was up 22.5% to $4.52 billion. Priced options went up 4.9% to $12.8 billion. Book-to-bill ratio was 0.38, up 5.6% year over year. Headcount of 27,173 increased 4.2% year over year.
Operating Results
Adjusted EBITDA for the fiscal year amounted to $754.1 million, up 11.8% year over year. Adjusted EBITDA margin on revenues increased to 8.8% from 8.6% in the year-ago quarter. Adjusted EBITDA margin on revenues, excluding billable expenses, increased to 12.7% from 12.4% in the year-ago quarter. Operating income was $669.2 million, up 11.1% year over year. Adjusted operating income margin on revenues was 7.7%, up from the year-ago quarter’s figure of 7.5%. Adjusted operating income margin on revenues, excluding billable expenses, was 11.1% compared with 10.8% in the year-ago quarter.
Balance Sheet & Cash Flow
Booz Allen Hamilton exited the fiscal fourth quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $450.8 million compared with $741.9 million at the end of the prior quarter. Long-term debt (net of current portion) was $2 billion roughly flat with the previous quarter. The company generated $184.9 million of net cash from operating activities. Capital expenditure was $37.4 million and free cash flow was $147.6 million for the March end quarter.
The company paid out dividend worth $43.6 million and repurchased shares worth $145 million in the reported quarter.
Fiscal 2021 Outlook
The company raised its revenue growth projection to 6-10% from 10-11.5% expected earlier. The adjusted earnings per share guidance has been raised to $3.40-$3.60 from $3.05-$3.15 guided earlier. The midpoint ($3.5) of the revised guided range is below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.44.
Adjusted EBITDA margin on revenues is anticipated to be 10%. Operating cash flow is now expected in the range of $550-$600 million compared with the previous expectation of $500-$550 million.
Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corporation Quote
Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider
Booz Allen Hamilton currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
A few better-ranked stocks in the broader Zacks Business Services sector are FactSet Research Systems Inc. FDS, SailPoint Technologies Holdings, Inc. SAIL and SPS Commerce, Inc. SPSC, each carrying a Zacks Rank #2(Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Long-term earnings (three to five years) growth rate for FactSet Research, SailPoint Technologies and SPS Commerce is estimated at 8.5%, 15% and 15%, respectively.
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