Earnings Outlook for Community Bankers Trust

Community Bankers Trust ESXB announces its next round of earnings this Friday, January 29. Here is Benzinga's look at Community Bankers Trust's Q4 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

Analysts covering Community Bankers Trust modeled for quarterly EPS of $0.17 on revenue of $14.68 million. Community Bankers Trust EPS in the same period a year ago totaled $0.18. Revenue was $13.79 million.

Why Analyst Estimates And Earnings Surprises Are Important

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 match the consensus estimate when it reports Friday, EPS would have fallen 5.56%. Revenue would be up 6.45% from the same quarter last year. The company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past like this:

Stock Performance

Shares of Community Bankers Trust were trading at $7.21 as of January 27. Over the last 52-week period, shares are down 18.8%. Given that these returns are generally negative, long-term shareholders are probably upset going into this earnings release.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Community Bankers Trust is scheduled to hold the call at 10:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.