Earnings Outlook For Walgreens Boots Alliance

Walgreens Boots Alliance WBA announces its next round of earnings this Wednesday, March 31. Here is Benzinga's look at Walgreens Boots Alliance's Q2 earnings report.

What Are Earnings, Net Income, 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

Based on management's projections, Walgreens Boots Alliance analysts model for earnings of $1.12 per share on sales of $35.46 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance reported a profit of $1.52 per share when it published results during the same quarter last year. Sales in that period totaled $35.82 billion.

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.

The analyst consensus estimate would represent a 26.32% decrease in the company's earnings. Revenue would be down 1.01% from the year-ago period. Here is how the company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past:

Stock Performance

Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance were trading at $52.85 as of March 29. Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 22.9%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders should be content going into this earnings release.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Walgreens Boots Alliance is scheduled to hold the call at 08:30:00 ET and can be accessed here.