Shares of Sonic Corp. (SONC, Financial) jumped more than 4% on Tuesday on the back of the company announcing its performance for fourth-quarter 2017 on Oct. 16.
Net income per diluted share was 50 cents, down from 53 cents in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted net income per diluted share remained the same as the prior year at 45 cents. EPS beat expectations by two cents.
Revenue of $123.57 million, however, declined 23.8% year over year and missed estimates by $3.35 million.
Quarterly same-store sales decreased 3.3%, consisting of a 3.2% same-store sales decline at franchised restaurants and a 4.8% decline at company-owened locations. Further, the company repurchased 1.8 million outstanding shares.
CEO Cliff Hudson said the weaker-than-expected same-store sales performance was due to intense competitive environment and unfavorable weather, including negative effects caused by Hurricane Harvey.
Moreover, the company expects adjusted EPS for fiscal year 2018 to increase 5% to 10% year over year.
Shares of UnitedHealth Group Inc. (UNH, Financial) also traded more than 5% higher after announcing third-quarter EPS of $2.66, which beat estimates by 10 cents. Revenue of $50.32 billion was in line with expectations despite a year-over-year increase of 8.7%.
Earnings from operations were $2.4 billion, a 13.2% increase from the year-ago quarter due to strong, diversified revenue growth and better operating margins.
The company now expects 2017 GAAP net earnings of $9.45 per share and adjusted net earnings of $10 per share.
Some key ratios have improved, such as the consolidated medical care ratio of 81.4%, which increased 110 basis points year over year. Further, UnitedHealth paid $726 million in dividends during the quarter. As of the last day of September, the company had repurchased 7.1 million shares for $1.17 billion.
Disclosure: The author holds no positions in any stocks mentioned.
