Benzinga | Feb 18, 2021 10:08AM EST

A Preview Of DTE Energy's Earnings

On Friday, February 19, DTE Energy (NYSE:DTE) will release its latest earnings report. Check out Benzinga's preview to understand the implications.

Net Income, Earnings, 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

DTE Energy earnings will be near $1.27 per share on sales of $3.19 billion, according to analysts. In the same quarter last year, DTE Energy announced EPS of $1.35 on revenue of $3.15 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 Wall Street consensus estimate for earnings would represent a 5.93% decrease for the company. Revenue would be up 1.33% on a year-over-year basis. Here is how the company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past:

Quarter Q3 2020 Q2 2020 Q1 2020 Q4 2020EPS Estimate 1.94 1.13 1.74 1.30EPS Actual 2.61 1.53 1.76 1.35Revenue Estimate 3.11 B 2.96 B 3.44 B 3.51 BRevenue Actual 3.28 B 2.58 B 3.02 B 3.15 B

Stock Performance

Shares of DTE Energy were trading at $120.08 as of February 17. Over the last 52-week period, shares are down 10.85%. Given that these returns are generally negative, long-term shareholders are probably upset going into this earnings release.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. DTE Energy is scheduled to hold the call at 09:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.