Earnings Preview for Phillips 66

Phillips 66 PSX announces its next round of earnings this Friday, April 30. Here is Benzinga's everything-that-matters guide for this Friday'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 are expecting Phillips 66 to report a loss of $1.4 per share. Revenue will likely be around $18.57 billion, according to the consensus estimate. In the same quarter last year, Phillips 66 reported earnings per share of $1.02 on sales of $21.24 billion.

Why Analyst Estimates And Earnings Surprises Are Important

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 report earnings in line when it publishes results Friday, quarterly profit would be down 237.25%. Revenue would be down 12.59% from the year-ago period. Here is how the company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past:

Stock Performance

Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 23.4%. 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. Phillips 66 is scheduled to hold the call at 12:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.