Preview: Dave & Buster's Enter's Earnings

Dave & Buster's Enter PLAY unveils its next round of earnings this Thursday, December 10. Get prepared with Benzinga's ultimate preview for Dave & Buster's Enter's Q3 earnings.

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

Dave & Buster's Enter's per-share loss will be near $1.11 on sales of $109.70 million, according to Wall Street analysts. Dave & Buster's Enter EPS in the same period a year ago totaled $0.02. Sales were $299.35 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 analyst consensus estimate would represent a 5650.0% decline in the company's EPS figure. Revenue would have fallen 63.35% from the same quarter last year. Dave & Buster's Enter's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past like this:

Stock Performance

Shares of Dave & Buster's Enter were trading at $25.37 as of December 08. Over the last 52-week period, shares are down 38.62%. Given that these returns are generally negative, long-term shareholders are likely unhappy going into this earnings release.

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