Medifast (MED) Beats Q3 Earnings and Revenue Estimates

Core Viewpoint - Medifast reported quarterly earnings of $0.35 per share, significantly beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $0.15 per share, although this is a decline from $2.12 per share a year ago, indicating a substantial earnings surprise of 333.33% [1] Group 1: Earnings Performance - The company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates three times over the last four quarters [2] - Medifast's revenues for the quarter ended September 2024 were $140.16 million, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.48%, but down from $235.87 million year-over-year [2] - The company has topped consensus revenue estimates four times over the last four quarters [2] Group 2: Stock Performance and Outlook - Medifast shares have declined approximately 72.4% since the beginning of the year, contrasting with the S&P 500's gain of 20.1% [3] - The company's earnings outlook is mixed, with a current Zacks Rank of 3 (Hold), suggesting shares are expected to perform in line with the market in the near future [6] - Current consensus EPS estimate for the coming quarter is $0.16 on revenues of $162.26 million, and $1.12 on revenues of $641.01 million for the current fiscal year [7] Group 3: Industry Context - The Food - Miscellaneous industry, to which Medifast belongs, is currently in the bottom 45% of over 250 Zacks industries, indicating potential challenges ahead [8] - Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions, which can impact Medifast's stock performance [5]