Earnings Preview: Jack Henry & Associates

On Monday, February 08, Jack Henry & Associates JKHY will release its latest earnings report. Here is Benzinga's outlook for the company.

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 Jack Henry & Associates reporting earnings of $0.87 per share on revenue of $432.71 million. Jack Henry & Associates earnings in the same period a year ago was $0.94 per share. Quarterly sales came in at $419.12 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 7.45% decrease in the company's earnings. Sales would be up 3.24% from the same quarter last year. Here is how the company's reported EPS has compared to analyst estimates in the past:

Stock Performance

Shares of Jack Henry & Associates were trading at $153.39 as of February 04. Over the last 52-week period, shares are down 8.41%. Given that these returns are generally negative, long-term shareholders are likely a little upset going into this earnings release.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Jack Henry & Associates is scheduled to hold the call at 08:45:00 ET and can be accessed here.