Garmin Blows Away Estimates

Shares of navigation devices maker Garmin(GRMN) jumped after the company scorched analysts' second-quarter expectations and offered strong guidance for the year.

Net income for the quarter soared to $214.4 million, or 98 cents a share, compared with $123.3 million, or 56 cents a share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, the company posted earnings of $1 a share. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial were expecting earnings of 74 cents a share.

Revenue rose 72% to $742 million from $433 million a year ago. Analysts were expecting revenue of $645.6 million.

Shares of Garmin were up $8.60, or 10.3%, to $92.50 in recent trading.

Automotive and mobile segment revenue increased 99% to $508 million in the second quarter; aviation segment revenue increased 39% to $78 million; outdoor and fitness segment revenue increased 9% to $77 million, and marine segment revenue increased 59% to $80 million.

Revenue from North America was up 95% to $455 million. Europe revenue increased 44% to $257 million, and revenue from Asia grew 41% to $31 million.

For fiscal 2007, Garmin expects revenue to exceed $2.8 billion and EPS to exceed $3.15. Analysts were expecting revenue of $2.61 billion and earnings of $2.90 a share.

Garmin also approved an annual cash dividend of 75 cents a share, an increase of 25 cents a share.

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