Earnings In Focus: Dec. 13 (NDSN, PIR)

(RTTNews) - Nordson Corp. (NDSN) is due to release its Q4 financial results after the bell today, with analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimating earnings of $1.33 per share on revenue of $545.15 million.

Year-Ago Numbers:

* Net income - $75.9 Mln * EPS - $1.31 * Sales - $509 Mln

Q4 Guidance:

Expects sales to increase 4% - 8% over prior year Sees GAAP EPS of $1.18 - $1.32 Projects EBITDA to be $133 mln - $144 mln, or $2.27 - $2.46 per share

While reporting Q3 results, Nordson President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Hilton, said, "At the low end of our guidance, Nordson is on pace to deliver record full year performance for most metrics, including revenue, earnings and EBITDA. At the midpoint of this guidance, full year organic growth is 6 percent, well above most global GDP forecasts and against a robust prior year comparison where we delivered 7 percent organic growth."

The company expects to continue generating strong levels of free cash, enabling it to maintain balanced and flexible approach to capital deployment, with de-leveraging likely to remain the near term priority. Overall, Nordson believes it remain well positioned across the diverse end markets.

The results are expected to benefit from the strong contributions from recent acquisitions and robust customer demand. The company continues to execute on continuous improvement initiatives across the enterprise.

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Pier 1 Imports Inc. (PIR) will release its Q3 financial results after the market closes today. Wall Street analysts are looking for earnings of $0.11 per share and revenue of $466.69 million for the quarter.

Year-Ago Numbers:

* Net income - $13.6 Mln * EPS - $0.17 * Adj. Net income - $17.6 Mln * Adj. EPS - $0.22 * Sales - $475.9 Mln

Q4 Outlook:

- Sees comparable sales to be flat to positive 2%, which is more consistent with its Q2 performance - Expects net sales growth of 5% - 7% - Projects EPS to be $0.34 - $0.44 - Sees adj. EPS of $0.36 - $0.46

Updated FY18 Guidance

- Expects EPS of $0.31 - $0.41 - Sees adj. EPS of $0.38 - $0.48; Consensus - $0.41/Shr - Expects net sales growth of flat to 2%

The results are likely to reflect the potential impact from Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. In an effort to boost its financials, the company continues to enhance its brand positioning and refine its operations within key areas of the business, including sourcing, supply chain and promotional effectiveness.

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ABM Industries Inc. (ABM), INTL FCStone Inc. (INTL), LightInTheBox Holding Co. Ltd. (LITB), Renren Inc. (RENN), Progressive Corp. (PGR), Schmitt Industries Inc. (SMIT), Urstadt Biddle Properties Inc. (UBA) are the few other companies that are lined up to report their quarterly results today.