Giant Interactive Group Beats Up on Analysts Yet Again

Giant Interactive Group (NYSE: GA  ) reported earnings on Feb. 26. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Giant Interactive Group met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue grew significantly. Non-GAAP earnings per share grew significantly. GAAP earnings per share dropped significantly.

Margins shrank across the board.

Revenue details
Giant Interactive Group notched revenue of $91.7 million. The eight analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ foresaw revenue of $91.0 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 17% higher than the prior-year quarter's $78.5 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
EPS came in at $0.23. The seven earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $0.21 per share. Non-GAAP EPS of $0.23 for Q4 were 35% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.17 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.05 for Q4 were 71% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.17 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 86.3%, much worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 56.6%, 260 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 14.5%, much worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $94.3 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.22.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $401.4 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.93.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 590 members out of 612 rating the stock outperform, and 22 members rating it underperform. Among 119 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 115 give Giant Interactive Group a green thumbs-up, and four give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Giant Interactive Group is outperform, with an average price target of $6.54.

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