American Vanguard (US:AVD) Zacks Investment Research·2024-03-15 13:56Core Viewpoint - American Vanguard Corporation (AVD) reported a significant increase in earnings per share for Q4 2023, reaching 25 cents, compared to 13 cents in the same quarter last year, aligning with the Zacks Consensus Estimate [1] Financial Performance - Revenues for Q4 2023 were $172.2 million, an 8% increase year over year, but slightly below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $172.7 million [1] - For the full year 2023, net sales decreased to $579 million from $610 million in 2022, with net income dropping to $7.5 million from $27.4 million [3] - Earnings per share for 2023 were 26 cents, down from 92 cents in 2022 [3] - The company ended the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of approximately $11.4 million, a 44% decrease year over year, while long-term debt rose to about $138.9 million, a 170% increase [4] Sales by Regions - Revenues from the U.S. crop business increased nearly 11% year over year to around $83.4 million [2] - Sales from the U.S. non-crop business rose around 10% year over year to approximately $25.2 million [2] - International business revenues fell 7% year over year to $63.5 million [2] Outlook - The company aims for revenue growth of 8-12% in 2024, projecting full-year adjusted EBITDA between $70-$80 million [5] - AVD is targeting adjusted EBITDA growth to 15% of net sales, which could add an additional $15 million or more in adjusted EBITDA annually [5] - The benefits from the business transformation initiative are expected to materialize by 2026, focusing on operational, commercial, digital, and administrative improvements [5] Price Performance - American Vanguard's shares have decreased by 47.9% over the past year, contrasting with a 34.4% increase in the industry [6]