Is Reducing Costs Enough to Improve 3D Systems Earnings?

3D Systems Corp. (NYSE: DDD) reported third-quarter 2015 results before markets opened Wednesday. The 3D printer maker reported adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.01 and $151.6 million in revenues. In the same period a year ago, 3D Systems reported EPS of $0.18 on revenue on revenue of $166.94 million. Third-quarter results also compare to the Thomson Reuters consensus estimates for EPS of $0.07 per share and $181.09 million.

On a GAAP basis, the company posted a quarterly loss of $0.29 per share.

The company’s interim president and CEO, Andrew Johnson, said:

We are disappointed with our overall results and the lower revenue from our 3D printing products and services, which we believe were negatively impacted by continued challenging market conditions that extended customers’ capital investment cycles and reduced demand across all geographies. … As we navigate challenging market conditions, we are taking decisive steps to reduce our cost structure and better prioritize our resources around near-term opportunities while continuing investments in quality initiatives, partner-centric programs and new products.

The company’s former CEO, Avi Reichental, resigned last week and 3D Systems’ board established an executive management committee chaired by company co-founder Charles Hull, and including Johnson, COO Mark Wright and CFO David Styka. A search has already begun for a permanent CEO.

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Consensus fourth-quarter estimates call for EPS of $0.14 on revenues of $202.08 million. For the full year, analysts were looking for EPS of $0.30 on revenues of $711.85 million. The company withdrew guidance at the end of the first quarter of this year.

The company’s gross margin dropped by 90 basis points to 46.9% compared with the same quarter a year ago. 3D Systems attributes the drop primarily to the negative impact of consumer products.

For the first nine months of 2015, revenue is up 4% to $482.8 million, and up 12% on a constant currency basis.

The share price has dropped about 90% since reaching a peak over $97 in December of 2013.

The era of serial acquisitions at 3D Systems may finally be over as the company’s interim CEO noted that it now plans to focus on “near-term opportunities.” He did leave the door open to more acquisitions, but the possibility strikes us as remote. Cutting costs is the new order of the day, and we should be seeing some evidence of that fairly soon.

Shares of 3D Systems traded down about 4.2% in Wednesday’s premarket, at $10.00 in a 52-week range of $10.03 to $38.07. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of $15.09 before the results were announced.

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