A Preview Of Houlihan Lokey's Earnings

Houlihan Lokey HLI will be releasing its next round of earnings this Tuesday, May 11. For all of the relevant information, here is your guide for Tuesday's Q4 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

Houlihan Lokey EPS is expected to be around $1.14, according to sell-side analysts. Sales will likely be near $370.30 million. Houlihan Lokey reported a per-share profit of $0.96 when it published results during the same quarter last year. Sales in that period totaled $302.69 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 18.75%. Sales would be have grown 22.33% from the same quarter last year. The company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past like this:

Stock Performance

For a full 12 months, the return has risen by 14.04%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders are probably relaxed going into this earnings release. Long-term shareholders are already enjoying 12-month gains prior to the announcement.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Houlihan Lokey is scheduled to hold the call at 17:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.