Ultralife (NASDAQ:ULBI) Issues Earnings Results

Ultralife (NASDAQ:ULBI) announced its earnings results on Friday. The technology company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.18), Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $47.45 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $52.40 million. Ultralife had a negative net margin of 3.09% and a positive return on equity of 3.10%.

Here are the key takeaways from Ultralife’s conference call:

• Q1 revenue was $47.4 million with an operating loss of $0.2 million and a net loss of $0.5 million (?$0.03/sh), attributed to shipment timing, Middle East delivery delays, plant reorganizations, weather-related interruptions, and pre?revenue staffing and consulting costs.
• Consolidated gross margin dropped to 21.3% (down 380 bps) and gross profit fell 20.7% year?over?year, driven largely by lost production days (Newark substation failure and a 16?day equivalent impact at Raynham during ERP/inventory transition), higher energy costs, and unfavorable sales mix/tariffs.
• The company exited Q1 with a record backlog of $115.1 million (up 21% YoY), representing 61% of trailing?12?month sales and including over $12 million of new?product backlog, providing stronger near?term revenue visibility.
• Management is investing in product development and vertical integration (Electrochem), expects to more than double internal cell usage, shipped the first conformal wearable battery order with > $8 million backlog, and won a $4 million multi?year award—actions intended to stabilize Communications Systems revenue and lift gross margins.

Ultralife Price Performance

Shares of ULBI opened at $5.97 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $99.46 million, a PE ratio of -16.58 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $6.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $6.30. Ultralife has a 1-year low of $4.78 and a 1-year high of $9.52.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ultralife

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. XTX Topco Ltd increased its stake in shares of Ultralife by 19.9% in the 4th quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 15,456 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 2,569 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Ultralife by 30.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 12,067 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 2,836 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Ultralife by 1,650.0% in the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 5,565 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 5,247 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ultralife in the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Prelude Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ultralife in the 3rd quarter worth $71,000. 30.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ultralife Company Profile

Ultralife Corporation (NASDAQ: ULBI) develops, manufactures and sells a broad range of energy and communications products for defense, medical, automotive and consumer electronics markets. The company operates through two primary segments: Power Systems and Communications Systems. In its Power Systems segment, Ultralife produces lithium-ion rechargeable cells and battery packs, primary lithium batteries, alkaline and rechargeable battery packs, chargers and battery accessories designed to meet demanding performance and safety requirements.