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Hewlett-Packard Fourth Quarter Earnings Preview
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When Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ) releases its fourth quarter earnings on Tuesday, November 20, 2012, analysts are expecting a 2.6% drop in earnings from a year ago. The consensus estimate is $1.14 per share, down from earnings of $1.17 per share a year ago.
Earnings are perhaps the single most studied number in a company's financial statements because they show a company's profitability. SEE: How To Decode A Company's Earnings Reports
What to Expect: The consensus estimate is down from $1.18 three months ago, but it hasn't changed in the last month. For the fiscal year, analysts are projecting earnings of $4.03 per share.
Hewlett-Packard is expected to report revenue of $30.45 billion for the quarter, down by 5.2% from last year's figure of $32.12 billion. Revenue for the fiscal year is expected to come in at $120.92 billion.
Company Performance: Hewlett-Packard has reported declining revenue on a year-over-year basis for the past four quarters. It fell 4.9% in the third quarter, 3% in the second quarter, 7% in the first quarter and 3.5% in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year.
The price/earnings ratio is calculated by taking a stock price and dividing it by the earnings-per-share (EPS). A high P/E ratio indicates a stock that is expensive, while a low P/E ratio indicates a stock that is cheap. SEE: Understanding The P/E Ratio
Since August 17, 2012, the stock price has fallen 32.7% to $13.13 from $19.52. The price is within 6 cents of its 52-week low, which was set on November 13, 2012 at $13.07. October 2, 2012 to October 3, 2012 marked one of Hewlett-Packard's worst periods, as the share price fell $2.22.
The Competition: Hewlett-Packard provides products, technologies, software and services to individual consumers, businesses and large enterprises, including customers in the government. Fourteen of 25 analysts rate Hewlett-Packard a hold. They have grown a bit more optimistic about the stock, as the number of buy ratings has inched up over the past three months.
The company's closest competitor in the computer hardware industry is Apple (AAPL). Analysts are less optimistic about Hewlett-Packard than about Apple. Thirty-eight out of 40 analysts rate the latter a buy compared to three of 25 for the former.
Earnings are perhaps the single most studied number in a company's financial statements because they show a company's profitability. SEE: How To Decode A Company's Earnings Reports
What to Expect: The consensus estimate is down from $1.18 three months ago, but it hasn't changed in the last month. For the fiscal year, analysts are projecting earnings of $4.03 per share.
Hewlett-Packard is expected to report revenue of $30.45 billion for the quarter, down by 5.2% from last year's figure of $32.12 billion. Revenue for the fiscal year is expected to come in at $120.92 billion.
Company Performance: Hewlett-Packard has reported declining revenue on a year-over-year basis for the past four quarters. It fell 4.9% in the third quarter, 3% in the second quarter, 7% in the first quarter and 3.5% in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year.
Since August 17, 2012, the stock price has fallen 32.7% to $13.13 from $19.52. The price is within 6 cents of its 52-week low, which was set on November 13, 2012 at $13.07. October 2, 2012 to October 3, 2012 marked one of Hewlett-Packard's worst periods, as the share price fell $2.22.
The Competition: Hewlett-Packard provides products, technologies, software and services to individual consumers, businesses and large enterprises, including customers in the government. Fourteen of 25 analysts rate Hewlett-Packard a hold. They have grown a bit more optimistic about the stock, as the number of buy ratings has inched up over the past three months.
The company's closest competitor in the computer hardware industry is Apple (AAPL). Analysts are less optimistic about Hewlett-Packard than about Apple. Thirty-eight out of 40 analysts rate the latter a buy compared to three of 25 for the former.
by
Investopedia Staff
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