TSC Ratings' Updates: KV Pharmaceutical

KV Pharmaceutical(KV.A Quote) has been upgraded from hold to buy. KV Pharmaceutical Company engages in the development, manufacture, acquisition, marketing and sale of branded and generic/nonbranded prescription pharmaceutical products. The company offers its products in various dosage forms, including tablets, capsules, creams, liquids and ointments.

The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its robust revenue growth, impressive record of earnings-per-share growth, compelling growth in net income, notable return on equity and reasonable valuation levels. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had lackluster performance in the stock itself.

The revenue growth came in higher than the industry average of 14.2%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenue rose by 30.2%. This growth in revenue appears to have trickled down to the company's bottom line, improving the earnings per share.

KV Pharmaceutical significant earnings per share improvement in the most recent quarter compared with the same quarter a year ago. The company has demonstrated a pattern of positive earnings-per-share growth over the past two years. We believe that this trend should continue. During the past fiscal year, KV Pharmaceutical increased its bottom line by earning $1.53 vs. 99 cents in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($1.55 vs. $1.53).

The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has significantly exceeded that of the S&P 500 and the pharmaceuticals industry. The net income increased by 102.2% when compared with the same quarter one year prior, rising from $6.20 million to $12.54 million.