The term earnings per share (EPS) represents the portion of a company's earnings, net of taxes and preferred stock dividends, that is allocated to each share of common stock. The figure can be calculated simply by dividing net income earned in a given reporting period (usually quarterly or annually) by the total number of shares outstanding during the same term. Because the number of shares outstanding can fluctuate, a weighted average is typically used.
TradersPro uses Quarterly EPS. On the stock analysis page when you see EPS it is the EPS from the companies most recent quarter.
Let's assume that during the fourth quarter, Company XYZ reported net income of $4 million. During the same time frame, the company had a total of 10 million shares outstanding. In this particular case, the company's quarterly earnings per share (or EPS) would be $0.40, calculated as follows:
$4 million / 10 million shares = $0.40
EPS is a carefully scrutinized metric that is often used as a barometer to gauge a company's profitability per unit of shareholder ownership. As such, earnings per share is a key driver of share prices. It is also used as the denominator in the frequently cited P/E ratio.