S&P 500 (NYSE:SPY) component Cummins Inc. (NYSE:CMI) reported net income above Wall Street’s expectations for the most recent quarter. Cummins is a company engaged in the design, manufacturing, and distribution of diesel and natural gas engines and related technologies. Its services to markets worldwide include electric power generation systems and engine-related component products.

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Cummins Earnings Cheat Sheet for the Fourth Quarter

Results: Net income for Cummins Inc. rose to $548 million ($2.86 per share) vs. $362 million ($1.84 per share) in the same quarter a year earlier. This marks a rise of 51.4% from the year earlier quarter.

Revenue: Rose 18.9% to $4.92 billion from the year earlier quarter.

Actual vs. Wall St. Expectations: Cummins Inc. reported adjusted net income of $2.56 per share. By that measure, the company beat the mean estimate of $2.23 per share. It beat the average revenue estimate of $4.71 billion.

Quoting Management: “Cummins had its best year ever in 2011, despite economic uncertainty in a number of regions. We continue to benefit from our leading position in a number of end markets and geographies,” said Tom Linebarger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “Revenue in the United States grew 53 percent and international revenue grew 27 percent year-over-year. In fact, we experienced record full year revenues in North America, Brazil, China, India and a number of other important markets.”

Key Stats:

The company has enjoyed double-digit year-over-year percentage revenue growth for the past five quarters. Over that span, the company has averaged growth of 35.4%, with the biggest boost coming in the first quarter when revenue rose 55.8% from the year earlier quarter.

The company has now seen net income rise in three straight quarters. In the third quarter, net income rose 59.7% and in the second quarter, the figure rose more than twofold.

The company topped expectations last quarter after falling short of forecasts in the third quarter with net income of $2.20 versus a mean estimate of net income of $2.25 per share.

Looking Forward: Over the past ninety days, the average estimate for the first quarter of the next fiscal year has fallen from $2.11 per share to $2.08, indicating that analysts are growing pessisimistic about the company’s performance next quarter. At $8.71 per share, the average estimate for the fiscal year has fallen from $8.74 ninety days ago.

(Company fundamentals provided by Xignite Financials. Earnings estimates provided by Zacks)

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To contact the reporter on this story: Derek Hoffman at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com

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