InterDigital is the IBD Stock Of The Day as the mobile, video and AI technology development company hits a buy point after its fourth-quarter earnings report. IDCC stock jumped Thursday on better-than-expected Q4 results and guidance.
Before the opening bell, Wilmington, Del.-based InterDigital said it earned $1.41 a share on sales of $105.5 million in the December quarter. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected earnings of 89 cents a share on sales of $104.6 million. On a year-over-year basis, InterDigital earnings rose 31% while sales dipped 10%.
For the current quarter, InterDigital predicted earnings of $2.68 a share on sales of $250 million. That's based on the midpoint of its guidance. Wall Street was modeling earnings of $1.59 a share on sales of $165.5 million for the first quarter.
For the full year, InterDigital forecast earnings of $5.55 a share on sales of $645 million, based on the midpoint of its outlook. Analysts had been looking for 2024 earnings of $4.51 a share on sales of $504.4 million. In 2023, InterDigital earned $7.62 a share, up 148%, on sales of $549.6 million, up 20%.
IDCC Stock Pops Higher
On the stock market today, IDCC stock jumped 11% to close at 116.15. Earlier in the session, it hit a record high of 116.88. With the move, it broke out of a flat base at a buy point of 111.78, according to IBD MarketSmith charts.
InterDigital is a global research and development company focused primarily on wireless, video and artificial intelligence technologies. It licenses those technologies to other companies for use in their products and services.
Smartphone technology accounted for 83.5% of InterDigital's revenue in the fourth quarter. Consumer electronics and other products contributed the remainder of sales.
"Our momentum has continued into 2024 with our recently announced landmark agreement that licenses Samsung TVs to our video IP (intellectual property)," Chief Executive Liren Chen said in a news release. "Based on the strength of contracted revenue and the potential for new agreements, we are guiding to another year of strong growth."
InterDigital ranks first out of 35 stocks in IBD's Electronics-Miscellaneous Products industry group, according to IBD Stock Checkup. IDCC stock has an IBD Composite Rating of 98 out of 99.
Further, IDCC stock is on the IBD Tech Leaders list.
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