Medifast, Inc. (MED) has reported a 6.55 percent rise in profit for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2016. The company has earned $4.11 million, or $0.34 a share in the quarter, compared with $3.86 million, or $0.33 a share for the same period last year. On the other hand, adjusted net income for the quarter stood at $4.11 million, or $0.34 a share compared with $3.86 million or $0.33 a share, a year ago.
Revenue during the quarter went up marginally by 1.88 percent to $62.47 million from $61.31 million in the previous year period. Gross margin for the quarter expanded 162 basis points over the previous year period to 75.37 percent. Total expenses were 89.41 percent of quarterly revenues, down from 90.97 percent for the same period last year. This has led to an improvement of 156 basis points in operating margin to 10.59 percent.
Operating income for the quarter was $6.61 million, compared with $5.53 million in the previous year period.
However, the adjusted operating income for the quarter stood at $6.61 million compared to $5.53 million in the prior year period. At the same time, adjusted operating margin improved 156 basis points in the quarter to 10.59 percent from 9.03 percent in the last year period.
"2016 was a year of strong execution reflecting our continued disciplined approach to effectively managing our business. We grew our revenue for the first time since 2013, increased our profitability year-over-year, and raised our quarterly dividend for 2017, all of which supported a strong return for shareholders in 2016," said Daniel R. Chard, Medifast's chief executive officer. "At the same time, we embarked on an exciting business evolution process to more aggressively pursue growth strategies. Going forward, we believe we are well positioned to achieve our operational and financial objectives."
For financial year 2017, Medifast, Inc. projects revenue from continuing operations to be in the range of $290 million to $300 million. It forecasts diluted earnings per share from continuing operations to be in the range of $2 to $2.10 for the same period.
For the first-quarter, Medifast, Inc. projects revenue from continuing operations to be in the range of $69 million to $73 million. It forecasts diluted earnings per share from continuing operations to be in the range of $0.45 to $0.48 for the same period.
Debt comes down significantly
Medifast, Inc. has recorded a decline in total debt over the last one year. It stood at $0.78 million as on Dec. 31, 2016, down 80.03 percent or $3.12 million from $3.90 million on Dec. 31, 2015. Total debt was 0.64 percent of total assets as on Dec. 31, 2016, compared with 3.32 percent on Dec. 31, 2015. Debt to equity ratio was at 0.01 as on Dec. 31, 2016, down from 0.04 as on Dec. 31, 2015.
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