Can Foster Wheeler Beat These Numbers?

Updated

Foster Wheeler (NAS: FWLT) is expected to report Q1 earnings on May 2. 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 Foster Wheeler's revenues will decrease -9.4% and EPS will wither -52.5%.

The average estimate for revenue is $845.5 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.19.


Revenue details
Last quarter, Foster Wheeler reported revenue of $735.3 million. GAAP reported sales were 35% lower than the prior-year quarter's $1.13 billion.

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, non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.27. GAAP EPS of $0.06 for Q4 were 82% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.34 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 21.2%, 770 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 7.6%, 320 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 0.9%, 260 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $3.76 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.48.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 1,631 members out of 1,682 rating the stock outperform, and 51 members rating it underperform. Among 337 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 327 give Foster Wheeler a green thumbs-up, and 10 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Foster Wheeler is outperform, with an average price target of $29.43.

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The article Can Foster Wheeler Beat These Numbers? 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 position in any of the stocks mentioned. 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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