General Dynamics's Earnings Outlook

General Dynamics GD will be releasing its next round of earnings this Wednesday, January 27. For all of the relevant information, here is your guide for Wednesday'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

Wall Street analysts see General Dynamics reporting earnings of $3.54 per share on revenue of $10.78 billion. General Dynamics earnings in the same period a year ago was $3.51 per share. Quarterly sales came in at $10.77 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 Wednesday, quarterly profit would be up 0.85%. Revenue would be up 0.06% 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 down 15.88%. Given that these returns are generally negative, long-term shareholders won't be happy going into this earnings release.

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