Autodesk's Earnings Outlook

Autodesk ADSK releases its next round of earnings this Tuesday, November 24. Get the latest predictions in Benzinga's essential guide to the company's Q3 earnings report.

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

Based on management's projections, Autodesk analysts model for earnings of $0.96 per share on sales of $942.24 million. Autodesk earnings in the same period a year ago was $0.78 per share. Quarterly sales came in at $842.70 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, earnings would be up 23.08%. Sales would be up 11.81% 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

Shares of Autodesk were trading at $254.89 as of November 20. Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 50.11%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders should be content going into this earnings release.

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