Baker Hughes Earnings Preview: Analyts Expect Higher Earnings, Revenue from Prior Quarter

Baker Hughes BHI announces its next round of earnings this Monday, July 25, 2011. Here's Benzinga's essential guide to Baker Hughes' second quarter earnings report.

Earnings and Revenue:

Analysts are predicting a positive EPS reading of 91 cents per share and revenues of $4.53 billion. We'll have to wait for Monday to see if Baker Hughes falls in line with analyst expectations and reports an estimated increase in both EPS and revenue from the year-ago quarter.

Here's how the company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past:

Quarter	Q1	Q4	Q3	Q2
EPS Estimate	$0.78	$0.65	$0.47	$0.42
EPS Actual	$0.87	$0.84	$0.56	$0.41

Stock Performance:

At last check, shares of Baker Hughes were trading at $78.66. Since January 1st, shares of Baker Hughes have given investors a return of 38.2%. For a full 12 months, the return has risen by 65.8%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders are probably satisfied going into this earnings release.

• Long-term shareholders are already enjoying 12-month gains prior to the announcement

Average Stock Rating:

The average rating by analysts for Baker Hughes is a Moderate Buy. Over the past three months this rating's strength has declined slightly.

Competitors:

Looking for a sympathy stock to trade or interested in the performance of other companies in the same sector? Take a look at some of Baker Hughes' peers.

• Cameron International CAM: Moderate Buy with a $0.46 recent quarter EPS
• Flotek Industries FTK: Strong Buy with a -$0.02 recent quarter EPS
• Halliburton Company HAL: Moderate Buy with a $0.81 recent quarter EPS
• Lufkin Industries LUFK: Moderate Buy with a $0.44 recent quarter EPS

The oil-field services company's industry has seen price/earnings growth of 1.8% during the current fiscal year.

Finally, a description of the company's main areas of operation: Baker Hughes Inc. provides products and services for the drilling and evaluation of oil and gas wells as well as fluids and chemicals and reservoir technology.

Take Action:

There is your peek into Baker Hughes' upcoming earnings numbers, including some competitors to watch around the time of the announcement. Check back in with us after the announcement for a full recap of the announcement. In the meantime, here are some links to explore today.

• To see up-to-date news on Baker Hughes, click here
• To see other trading ideas, click here
• To see other company earnings recaps, click here