Toll Brothers Posts First Loss Ever, But Beats Estimates

Toll Brothers (TOL) reported its first quarterly loss in 21 years as a publicly traded company, but its adjusted $0.72/share loss came in better than analyst expectations of a $0.77/share loss. CEO Robert Toll commented, "By many measures, fiscal 2007 was the most challenging of the 40 years Toll Brothers has been in business (earnings call transcript). Toll's Q4 loss totaled $81.8M, compared to earnings of $173.8M last year. Pre-tax writedowns jumped to $314.9M, or $1.22/share, versus $0.42/share last year. Revenues fell 35% to $1.17B, in-line with estimates. CFO Joel Rassman said the company will not offer guidance for 2008, but warned revenues will be lower. Toll Brothers gained 13% to $23.42 on the beat. ETFs ITBand XHBoffer investors direct exposure to homebuilder stocks; both funds have lost more than 50% year-to-date (vs. Toll -36%), but are closely watched for signs of a bottom.

Sources: Associated Press, Bloomberg, MarketWatch
Additional Reading: Toll Brothers F4Q07 Earnings Call Transcript • Housing Market Tracker - Homebuilder Review

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