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TriMas (TRS) to Post Q4 Earnings: What's in the Cards?

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TriMas Corporation (TRS - Free Report) is scheduled to report fourth-quarter 2014 results on Feb 28, before the opening bell. Last quarter, this diversified global manufacturer of engineered and applied products posted a 10% decline in earnings as lower sales offset the benefits made by the company's cost savings initiatives. Gains from a recent acquisition and organic initiatives were negated by sales declines resulting from weakness in the oil and gas end markets as well as the impact of unfavorable currency exchange.

Let’s see how things are shaping up prior to this announcement.

Earnings Whispers?

Our proven model does not conclusively show that TriMas is likely to beat estimates this quarter. This is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks ESP: The Expected Surprise Prediction or ESP for TriMas is -3.33% as the Most Accurate Estimate of 29 cents is lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 30 cents.

Zacks Rank: TriMas currently carries a Zacks Rank #3. Though TriMas’ Zacks Rank #3 increases the predictive power of the ESP, its negative ESP of 3.33% makes surprise prediction difficult.

Earnings Surprise History

TriMas delivered a positive earnings surprise of 2.94% in the last quarter. The company has an impressive surprise history, outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the trailing four quarters, with an average earnings surprise of 2.59%.

TriMas Corporation Price and EPS Surprise
 

TriMas Corporation Price and EPS Surprise | TriMas Corporation Quote

Factors to Consider

TriMas had narrowed full-year 2016 earnings to a range of $1.24–$1.28 per share and anticipates sales to decline between 6–8% year over year. The sales growth guidance had been reduced due to lower expectations for the Packaging and Engineered Components segments, based on their year-to-date performance and current market trends. Sales growth in the packaging segment is now projected in the range of 2–3% due to continued currency pressures and certain customer product launches being delayed into 2017. Further, sales in the Engineered Components segment is now expected to decline 20–25% for the full year owing to the lower demand levels related to continued weak end markets. This is likely to impact fourth-quarter results as well.

Moreover, the current macroeconomic environment continues to pose a significant external headwind for many of TriMas’ businesses, most notably due to lower oil prices, strengthening of the U.S. dollar compared to foreign currencies, general industrial weakness, along with little or no general economic growth. Nevertheless, the company continues to optimize costs and improve manufacturing efficiency to counter the effect of a weak top-line on margins.

Price Performance



TriMas has underperformed the Zacks categorized Metal Products - Procurement and Fabrication sub industry in the past one year. The stock has gained 45.7%, falling behind the sub industry’s gain of 57.5%.

Stocks to Consider

Here are some companies you may want to consider as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat:

Burlington Stores, Inc. (BURL - Free Report) has a positive Earnings ESP of +1.18% and a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Emerge Energy Services LP has an Earnings ESP of +1.32% and a Zacks Rank #2.

Exelixis, Inc. (EXEL - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of 200.00% and a Zacks Rank #2.

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