Earnings Preview: Icon

Icon ICLR announces its next round of earnings this Wednesday, February 24. Here is Benzinga's everything-that-matters guide for this 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

Analysts expect Icon earnings of $1.83 per share. Revenue will likely be around $751.01 million, according to the consensus estimate. In the same quarter last year, Icon posted EPS of $1.83 on sales of $725.41 million.

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.

The analyst consensus estimate would represent a 0% decrease in the company's earnings. Revenue would be up 3.53% 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

Shares of Icon were trading at $208.25 as of February 22. Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 31.95%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders should be satisfied going into this earnings release.

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