Can United States Steel Beat These Numbers?

United States Steel (NYSE: X  ) is expected to report Q1 earnings around Feb. 1. 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 United States Steel's revenues will wither -10.5% and EPS will wither -55.2%.

The average estimate for revenue is $4.63 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.30.

Revenue details
Last quarter, United States Steel notched revenue of $4.49 billion. GAAP reported sales were 6.9% lower than the prior-year quarter's $4.82 billion.

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, EPS came in at -$0.35. GAAP EPS were -$0.35 for Q4 against -$1.58 per share for the prior-year quarter.

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 6.0%, 240 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -0.9%, 280 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -1.1%, 330 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $18.89 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.57.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 1,949 members out of 2,105 rating the stock outperform, and 156 members rating it underperform. Among 478 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 439 give United States Steel a green thumbs-up, and 39 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on United States Steel is hold, with an average price target of $25.82.

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