Earnings Preview: Forestar Gr

On Tuesday, April 20, Forestar Gr FOR will release its latest earnings report. Decipher the announcement with Benzinga's help.

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

Wall Street analysts see Forestar Gr reporting earnings of $0.65 per share on sales of $285.24 million. In the same quarter last year, Forestar Gr reported EPS of $0.2 on revenue of $159.10 million.

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 report earnings in line when it publishes results Tuesday, quarterly profit would be up 225.0%. Sales would be up 79.28% on a year-over-year basis. Forestar Gr's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past like this:

Stock Performance

Shares of Forestar Gr were trading at $25.75 as of April 16. Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 107.9%. 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. Forestar Gr is scheduled to hold the call at 17:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.