This may seem like a silly question, but when you make the remark ”consensus earnings per share – or + %”, is that what you are expecting to happen when the earnings results come out ?
A: In my book, there is no such thing as a silly question. I ask them all the time!
The + or – is the percentage change (positive or negative) on the expected consensus result, vs the previous period.
For example:
Cochlear (COH)
Full-year
Consensus earnings per share (EPS): 275.2 cents, +67.2%
Consensus dividend per share (DPS): 192.4 cents, –24.2%
The market is expecting Cochlear’s EPS to be 275.2 cents, which would be up 67.2% on the result for FY14. The market is also expecting Cochlear to pay a full year dividend of 192.4cents, which is down 24.2% on FY 14.
Hope this is clear.
