Benzinga | Mar 22, 2021 10:02AM EDT

Earnings Outlook for Marrone Bio Innovations

Marrone Bio Innovations (NASDAQ:MBII) announces its next round of earnings this Tuesday, March 23. Here is Benzinga's look at Marrone Bio Innovations's Q4 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

Based on management's projections, Marrone Bio Innovations analysts modeled for a loss of $0.05 per share on sales of $8.94 million. In the same quarter last year, Marrone Bio Innovations posted EPS of $0.07 on sales of $6.70 million.

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 Tuesday, earnings would be up 28.57%. Sales would be up 33.43% from the year-ago period. Here is how the company's EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past:

Quarter Q3 2020 Q2 2020 Q1 2020 Q4 2020EPS Estimate -0.03 -0.04 -0.03 -0.06EPS Actual -0.04 -0.02 -0.05 -0.07Revenue Estimate 10.21 M 10.38 M 10.11 M 7.34 MRevenue Actual 8.83 M 12.18 M 9.65 M 6.70 M

Stock Performance

Shares of Marrone Bio Innovations were trading at $2.43 as of March 19. Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 169.66%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders are probably content going into this earnings release.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Marrone Bio Innovations is scheduled to hold the call at 16:30:00 ET and can be accessed here.