HCA Healthcare's Earnings: A Preview
On Monday, October 26, HCA Healthcare (NYSE: HCA) will release its latest earnings report. Benzinga's report can help you figure out the ins and outs of the earnings release.
What Are Earnings, Net Income, And Earnings Per Share?
Earnings and EPS are useful metrics of profitability. Total earnings also known as net income is equal to total revenue minus total expenses. Dividing net income by the total number of shares outstanding yields EPS.
Earnings And Revenue
Analysts covering HCA Healthcare modeled for quarterly EPS of $2.32 on revenue of $12.87 billion. In the same quarter last year, HCA Healthcare reported earnings per share of $2.23 on sales of $12.69 billion.
What Are Analyst Estimates And Earnings Surprises, And Why Do They Matter?
Wall Street analysts who study this company will publish analyst estimates of revenue and EPS. The averages of all analyst EPS and revenue estimates are called the "consensus estimates"; these consensus estimates can have a significant effect on a company's performance during an earnings release. When a company posts earnings or revenue above or below a consensus estimate, it has posted an "earnings surprise", which can really move a stock depending on the difference between actual and estimated values.
If the company were to match the consensus estimate when it reports Monday, earnings would be up 4.04%. Revenue would be up 1.39% from the same quarter last year. The company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past like this:
EPS Estimate | -0.51 | 2.66 | 3.09 | 2.13 |
EPS Actual | 3.23 | 2.33 | 3.09 | 2.23 |
Revenue Estimate | 9.91 B | 13.11 B | 13.37 B | 12.50 B |
Revenue Actual | 11.07 B | 12.86 B | 13.52 B | 12.69 B |
Stock Performance
Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 8.52%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders can be content going into this earnings release.
Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. HCA Healthcare is scheduled to hold the call at 10:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.
See more from Benzinga
© 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
