Coming Soon: Penn National Gaming Earnings

Penn National Gaming (Nasdaq: PENN  ) is expected to report Q4 earnings on Jan. 31. 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 Penn National Gaming's revenues will grow 13.6% and EPS will increase 19.5%.

The average estimate for revenue is $768.5 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.49.

Revenue details
Last quarter, Penn National Gaming logged revenue of $707.0 million. GAAP reported sales were 0.5% lower than the prior-year quarter's $710.9 million.

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 $0.57. GAAP EPS of $0.44 for Q3 were 33% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.66 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 42.2%, 120 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 14.1%, 420 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 6.6%, 340 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $2.92 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.38.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 343 members out of 374 rating the stock outperform, and 31 members rating it underperform. Among 104 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 98 give Penn National Gaming a green thumbs-up, and six give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Penn National Gaming is outperform, with an average price target of $47.76.

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