United Community Banks's Earnings Outlook

United Community Banks UCBI announces its next round of earnings this Tuesday, April 20. Here is Benzinga's everything-that-matters guide for this Tuesday's Q1 earnings announcement.

Net Income, Earnings, 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 covering United Community Banks modeled for quarterly EPS of $0.65 on revenue of $178.68 million. In the same quarter last year, United Community Banks reported earnings per share of $0.41 on revenue of $122.23 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.

The Wall Street consensus estimate for earnings would represent a 58.54% increase for the company. Revenue would be up 46.18% on a year-over-year basis. In comparison to analyst estimates in the past, here is how the company's reported EPS stacks up:

Stock Performance

Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 91.64%. 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. United Community Banks is scheduled to hold the call at 11:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.