Earnings estimate

Earnings Estimate

An analyst's best guess as to what a company's earnings will be for a given quarter or year. Analysts use a variety of methods, mostly involving past information and current news, to arrive at earnings estimates. They are circulated prior to a company's announcement of its earnings statement. If earnings are lower than most estimates, this can cause a decline in its share price. Likewise, unexpectedly high earnings can cause a price jump.

Earnings estimate.

Professional stock analysts use mathematical models that weigh companies' financial data to predict their future earnings per share on a quarterly, annual, and long-term basis.

Investment research companies, such as Thomson Financial and Zacks, publish averages of analysts' estimates for specific companies. These averages are called consensus estimates.