Preview: Kohl's's Earnings

On Thursday, May 20, Kohl's KSS will release its latest earnings report. Here is Benzinga's outlook for the company.

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

Kohl's earnings will be near $0.04 per share on sales of $3.48 billion, according to analysts. In the same quarter last year, Kohl's reported a loss per share of $3.2 on revenue of $2.43 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 Thursday, earnings would be up 101.25%. Revenue would be up 43.33% on a year-over-year basis. The company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past like this:

Stock Performance

Shares of Kohl's were trading at $61.8 as of May 18. Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 231.59%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders are probably happy going into this earnings release.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Kohl's is scheduled to hold the call at 09:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.