KB Home misses by $0.36, misses on revs (KBH) 11.24 : Reports Q1 (Feb) loss of $0.59 per share, $0.36 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of ($0.23); revenues rose 29.3% year/year to $254.6 mln vs the $338.61 mln consensus. Metrics: Homes delivered increased 21% to 1,150, up from 949 homes delivered in the year-earlier quarter. Three of the co's four regions produced higher deliveries. The average selling price rose 6% to $219,000 from $205,700 for the year-earlier quarter, reflecting increases in the co's West Coast and Southwest regions that were partly offset by decreases in its Central and Southeast regions. Housing gross margin was 9.7% for the first quarter of 2012, compared to 12.6% for the first quarter of 2011. Net orders totaled 1,197 in the first quarter of 2012, down 8% YoY, as a 22% increase in the co's Central region was more than offset by decreases in each of the co's three other regions. Though gross orders were up 3%, an increase in the cancellation rate to 36% from 29% in the year-earlier quarter led to the year-over-year decrease in net orders. The co had a backlog of 2,203 homes, representing potential future housing revenues of $460.0 million, as of February 29, 2012, compared to a backlog of 1,689 homes, representing potential future housing revenues of $353.6 million, as of February 28, 2011. Mgmt: "Reflecting the improving trends in the economy, including recent job growth and higher consumer confidence, we are seeing signs that the overall housing market is stabilizing and beginning to recover. The pace of the recovery is uneven, however, with certain local markets showing greater strength and more normalized activity than other areas where a rebound will take longer to manifest. We expect that the housing market in general will gradually strengthen as the economy continues to advance. While we are encouraged by the recent positive economic and housing market trends, our operational and financial results for the first quarter were mixed. We ended the quarter with a higher backlog compared to a year ago, although our orders moderated."
