Benzinga | May 3, 2021 10:18AM EDT

Veeco Instruments's Earnings Outlook

Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) releases its next round of earnings this Tuesday, May 04. Here is Benzinga's essential guide to Veeco Instruments's Q1 earnings report.

What Are Earnings, Net Income, 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

Sell-side analysts expect Veeco Instruments's EPS to be near $0.23 on sales of $125.57 million. Veeco Instruments reported a per-share profit of $0.22 when it published results during the same quarter last year. Sales in that period totaled $104.50 million.

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.

If the company were to report earnings in line when it publishes results Tuesday, earnings would be up 4.55%. Sales would be up 20.16% on a year-over-year basis. Here is how the company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past: Quarter Q4 2021 Q3 2020 Q2 2020 Q1 2020EPS Estimate 0.3 0.20 0.07 0.06EPS Actual 0.3 0.22 0.11 0.22Revenue Estimate 129.11 M 111.55 M 97.83 M 103.41 MRevenue Actual 138.95 M 112.08 M 98.64 M 104.50 M

Stock Performance

For a full 12 months, the return has risen by 114.59%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders are probably relaxed 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. Veeco Instruments is scheduled to hold the call at 17:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.