Amazon.com's Earnings Outlook

On Thursday, October 29, Amazon.com AMZN will report its last quarter's earnings. Here is Benzinga's preview of the company's release.

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

Analysts expect Amazon.com earnings of $7.25 per share. Revenue will likely be around $92.48 billion, according to the consensus estimate. Amazon.com reported a profit of $4.23 per share when it published results during the same quarter last year. Sales in that period totaled $69.98 billion.

What Are Analyst Estimates And Earnings Surprises, And Why Do They Matter?

Analysts who cover this company will publish forward-looking estimates of its revenue and EPS each quarter. Averaging together every EPS and revenue prediction that each analyst makes about a company in a quarter yields the "consensus estimates." A company posting earnings or revenue above or below the consensus estimate is known as an "earnings surprise" and may move the stock by a considerable margin.

If the company were to report earnings in line when it publishes results Thursday, earnings would be up 71.39%. Revenue would be have grown 32.15% from the same quarter last year. Here is how the company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past:

Stock Performance

Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 81.17%. 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. Amazon.com is scheduled to hold the call at 17:30:00 ET and can be accessed here.