Preview: Cabot Oil & Gas's Earnings

Cabot Oil & Gas COG releases its next round of earnings this Thursday, April 29. Get the latest predictions in Benzinga's essential guide to the company's Q1 earnings report.

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 expect Cabot Oil & Gas earnings of $0.35 per share. Revenue will likely be around $473.19 million, according to the consensus estimate. Cabot Oil & Gas EPS in the same period a year ago totaled $0.14. Sales were $386.46 million.

Why Analyst Estimates And Earnings Surprises Are Important

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.

If the company were to match the consensus estimate when it reports Thursday, EPS would be up 150.0%. Revenue would be up 22.44% from the year-ago period. Cabot Oil & Gas's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past like this:

Stock Performance

Over the past 52-week period, shares of Cabot Oil & Gas have declined 21.14%.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Cabot Oil & Gas is scheduled to hold the call at 09:30:00 ET and can be accessed here.