American Axle & Manufacturing Stock Slides After Q4 Earnings Miss

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc AXL reported a fourth-quarter FY21 sales decline of 14% year-on-year, to $1.24 billion, missing the analyst consensus of $1.28 billion.
The company noted its Q4 sales were unfavorably impacted by the semiconductor chip shortage impacting the automotive industry by $137 million.
Adjusted EPS loss of $(0.09) missed the analyst consensus of $0.02.
The gross profit fell 40.8% Y/Y to $140 million, with the margin contracting 510 basis points to 11.3%.
Selling, general and administrative expenses fell 6.9% Y/Y to $77.5 million.
The operating margin was 2.6%, and operating income for the quarter fell 68.5% to $32.4 million.
Cash provided by operating activities totaled $102.4 million with an adjusted free cash flow of $43.6 million.
The company held $530.2 million in cash and equivalents as of December 31, 2021.
Outlook: American Axle sees FY22 sales of $5.6 billion - $5.9 billion, against the consensus of $5.79 billion.
The company expects FY22 adjusted EBITDA of $800 million - $875 million.
The company estimates gross new and incremental business backlog launching from 2022 - 2024 at approximately $700 million in future annual sales.
Price Action: AXL shares are trading lower by 4.43% at $7.99 on the last check Friday.

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