Earnings Outlook For Northwest Pipe

Northwest Pipe NWPX will be releasing its next round of earnings this Wednesday, March 03. For all of the relevant information, here is your guide for Wednesday's Q4 earnings announcement.

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

Northwest Pipe EPS is expected to be around $0.51, according to sell-side analysts. Sales will likely be near $70.50 million. In the same quarter last year, Northwest Pipe reported EPS of $1.23 on revenue of $72.25 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 post earnings in line with the consensus estimate when it reports Wednesday, EPS would be down 58.54%. Sales would be down 2.42% 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 Northwest Pipe were trading at $36.07 as of March 01. Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 11.66%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders are probably satisfied going into this earnings release.

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