General Electric Company Earnings Preview: Analysts Expect Falling Revenue, Rising EPS

General Electric Company GE announces its next round of earnings this Friday, October 21, 2011. Here is Benzinga's everything-that-matters guide for this Friday's third quarter earnings announcement.

Earnings and Revenue:

Based on estimates, investors are readying for a positive EPS reading of 31 cents/share and revenues of $34.86 billion. General Electric Company's latest numbers will no doubt be compared with the company's year-ago quarter, when it reported a profit of 29 cents/share on revenues of $35.89 billion. We'll have to wait for Friday to see if General Electric Company falls in line with analyst expectations and reports an increase in EPS and a slight decline in revenue from the year-ago quarter.

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

Quarter	Q2	Q1	Q4	Q3
EPS Estimate	$0.32	$0.28	$0.32	$0.27
EPS Actual	$0.33	$0.31	$0.36	$0.29

Stock Performance:

Shares of General Electric Company were trading at $16.23 as of October 17, 2011. Shares are down 9% year to date. For a full 12 months, the return has risen by 4%. 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 General Electric Company is a Moderate Buy. The strength of this rating has declined slightly over the past three months.

Competitors:

Wondering how General Electric Company compares to rivals in the same sector? Here are a few of the company's peers.

Bio-Rad Laboratories BIO: Moderate Buy with a $1.41 recent quarter EPS
Danaher DHR: Moderate Buy with a $0.69 recent quarter EPS
Hitachi, Ltd. (ADR HIT: Strong Buy with a $0.07 recent quarter EPS
Honeywell International HON: Moderate Buy with a $1.00 recent quarter EPS

General Electric Company is in the diversified operations industry, which has experienced price/earnings growth of 1%.

Finally, a description of the company's main areas of operation: General Electric is an advanced technology, services and finance company that provides services ranging from aircraft engines to business and consumer financing.

Take Action:

Now that you have reviewed all the numbers, be ready to move if the upcoming General Electric Company earnings report has any surprises. Also, come back to Benzinga after the announcement for a full recap and a guide to your next steps.