Preview: United Airlines Holdings's Earnings

United Airlines Holdings UAL announces its next round of earnings this Monday, April 19. Here is Benzinga's everything-that-matters guide for this Monday's Q1 earnings announcement.

What Are Earnings, Net Income, And Earnings Per Share?

Earnings and especially earnings per share (EPS) are useful measures of a company's profitability. Total earnings, which is also referred to as net income, equals total revenue minus total expenses. EPS equals to net income divided by the number of shares outstanding.

Earnings And Revenue

Analysts covering United Airlines Holdings have modeled for quarterly EPS loss of $6.98 on revenue of $3.27 billion. In the same quarter last year, United Airlines Holdings reported EPS of $2.57 on revenue of $7.98 billion.

What Are Analyst Estimates And Earnings Surprises, And Why Do They Matter?

Analysts who cover this company will publish forward-looking estimates of its revenue and EPS each quarter. Averaging together every EPS and revenue prediction that each analyst makes about a company in a quarter yields the "consensus estimates." A company posting earnings or revenue above or below the consensus estimate is known as an "earnings surprise" and may move the stock by a considerable margin.

The analyst consensus estimate would represent a 171.6% decrease in the company's earnings. Revenue would be down 59.02% from the same quarter last year. Here is how the company's reported EPS has compared to analyst estimates in the past:

Stock Performance

Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 104.61%. 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. United Airlines Holdings is scheduled to hold the call at 10:30:00 ET and can be accessed here.