5 Key Takeaways From 3D Systems Corporation's (DDD) Earnings Call

Source: 3D Systems.

Last week, 3D Systems released its fourth-quarter and full-year 2014 earnings, which showed a business that continues to have trouble executing well across all of its segments. Along with the release, management provided additional color on the results during a conference call with analysts. Below are five key takeaways from the call.

1. North America's operating performance weighed on the company's overall organic growth rate.In the fourth quarter, 3D Systems' North American operating performance "fell well short of expectations," as CEO Avi Reichental put it, and restricted the company's organic growth rate -- the rate of annual revenue growth that doesn't account for acquisitions less than a year old -- to 7% during the quarter.

During the call, Reichental offered some color on how the company plans to resolve this issue:

2. Management prefers that investors focus on the company's unit growth instead of its organic growth rate.On the call, management said unit growth is a stronger indicator of the company's operating performance than organic growth.

After all, the company's unit growth in terms of 3D printers sold outpaced revenue growth by 3.5 times in the fourth quarter, and management believes growing its installed base lays the foundation for creating solid long-term recurring revenue-generating opportunities from the sale of high-margin consumables as its printers are used.

Chief Financial Officer Ted Hull elaborated:

3. 3D Systems' gross profit margin should expand in 2015.In the fourth quarter, 3D Systems' gross profit margin fell by 380 basis points year over year to 47.9%, as it continued to bear the up-front costs associated with a concentrated number of product launches and a manufacturing capacity build-out for its direct metal 3D printers.

However, according to Hull, not only are the underlying fundamentals of the business intact, but he also expects the company's gross profit margin will resume its expansion:

4. The company is working to measurably improve its operational efficiency.In recent years, 3D Systems' cash conversion cycle, which measures the amount of time it takes for cash to flow through the entire sales cycle, from sitting in the bank to buying inventory to selling inventory to collecting payment, has been rising:

DDD Cash Conversion Cycle (Quarterly) data by YCharts.

It's highly likely that 3D Systems' hyper-aggressive acquisition strategy has distracted from efficiently managing its inventory, paying its suppliers, and getting paid by customers.

Hull, though, emphasized that the company will work to improve its cash collection process; if successful, this would lead to an improved cash conversion cycle: "While we expect our DSO [days sales outstanding] to fluctuate a bit in the ordinary course [of business], we are taking decisive steps to improve our cash collection cycle and reduce DSO over time by another five days."

5. 3D Systems has not been experiencing pricing pressures.3D printer manufacturers in general face the threat of increased competition, whether from expiring patents or new technologies that make previous technologies seem inferior. The fear is that increased competition could create pricing pressures that eat into profitability and undermine the investing thesis.

As 3D Systems' unit growth outpaced its revenue growth by 3.5 times during the quarter, the issue of pricing pressures came up during the Q&A session.

Reichental wasted no time in setting the record straight:

Moments later, Reichental added:

The bottom lineAlthough 3D Systems' North American performance may have missed the mark in the fourth quarter, management has already begun implementing changes that should drive meaningful improvements to the segment's performance in future periods. Ultimately, a greater emphasis on operational effectiveness could also help 3D Systems establish that management is working to improve its execution across the board, which would certainly be a welcomed development for investors.

The article 5 Key Takeaways From 3D Systems Corporation's (DDD) Earnings Call originally appeared on Fool.com.

Steve Heller owns shares of 3D Systems. The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of 3D Systems. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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