Earnings Outlook For First Horizon National

First Horizon National FHN will be releasing its next round of earnings this Friday, January 22. For all of the relevant information, here is your guide for Friday's Q4 earnings announcement.

What Are Earnings, Net Income, 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

Based on First Horizon National management projections, analysts predict EPS of $0.33 on revenue of $783.28 million. First Horizon National reported a per-share profit of $0.47 when it published results during the same quarter last year. Sales in that period totaled $494.70 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.

The Wall Street consensus estimate for earnings would represent a 29.79% decrease for the company. Revenue would be have grown 58.33% from the same quarter last year. First Horizon National's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past like this:

Stock Performance

Over the past 52-week period, shares of First Horizon National have declined 12.36%. Given that these returns are generally negative, long-term shareholders are probably a little upset going into this earnings release.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. First Horizon National is scheduled to hold the call at 09:30:00 ET and can be accessed here.