Benzinga | Feb 19, 2021 10:38AM EST

Earnings Preview for Williams Companies

On Monday, February 22, Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) will release its latest earnings report. Benzinga's outlook for Williams Companies is included in the following report.

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

Wall Street expects EPS of $0.31 and sales around $1.87 billion. Williams Companies EPS in the same period a year ago totaled $0.24. Sales were $2.11 billion.

What Are Analyst Estimates And Earnings Surprises, And Why Do They Matter?

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.

If the company were to report earnings in line when it publishes results Monday, quarterly profit would be up 29.17%. Sales would have fallen 11.25% from the same quarter last year. Here is how the company's reported EPS has compared to analyst estimates in the past:

Quarter Q3 2020 Q2 2020 Q1 2020 Q4 2020EPS Estimate 0.27 0.24 0.26 0.24EPS Actual 0.27 0.25 0.26 0.24Revenue Estimate 1.75 B 1.79 B 2.13 B 2.09 BRevenue Actual 1.93 B 1.78 B 1.91 B 2.11 B

Stock Performance

Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 10.05%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders can relax going into this earnings release. Long-term shareholders are already enjoying 12-month gains prior to the announcement.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Williams Companies is scheduled to hold the call at 09:30:00 ET and can be accessed here.