Rackspace Hosting Earnings Up Next

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Rackspace Hosting (NYS: RAX) is expected to report Q3 earnings on Nov. 6. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:

The 10-second takeaway
 Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict Rackspace Hosting's revenues will expand 26.7% and EPS will grow 35.7%.

The average estimate for revenue is $335.2 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.19.


Revenue details
 Last quarter, Rackspace Hosting reported revenue of $319.0 million. GAAP reported sales were 29% higher than the prior-year quarter's $247.2 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 Last quarter, EPS came in at $0.18. GAAP EPS of $0.18 for Q2 were 38% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.13 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Recent performance
 For the preceding quarter, gross margin was 71.8%, 180 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 12.8%, 120 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 7.9%, 80 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $1.31 billion. The average EPS estimate is $0.76.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 894 members out of 965 rating the stock outperform, and 71 members rating it underperform. Among 214 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 189 give Rackspace Hosting a green thumbs-up, and 25 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Rackspace Hosting is outperform, with an average price target of $55.64.

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The article Rackspace Hosting Earnings Up Next originally appeared on Fool.com.

Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. Motley Fool newsletter services recommend Rackspace Hosting. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy

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