Piper Jaffray Earnings Preview

Investors never know what to expect for Piper Jaffray (NYSE: PJC  ) , as it has wavered between topping and missing analysts estimates during the past fiscal year. The company will unveil its latest earnings on Wednesday, July 20. Piper Jaffray Companies and its subsidiaries provide investment banking, institutional brokerage, asset management and related financial services.

What analysts say:

• Buy, sell, or hold?: Analysts think investors should stand pat on Piper Jaffray with four of five analysts rating it hold. Analysts don't like Piper Jaffray as much as competitor KBW overall. Three out of five analysts rate KBW a buy compared to zero of five for Piper Jaffray.
• Revenue Forecasts: On average, analysts predict $131.3 million in revenue this quarter. That would represent a rise of 2.8% from the year-ago quarter.
• Wall Street Earnings Expectations: The average analyst estimate is earnings of 49 cents per share. Estimates range from 46 cents to 54 cents.

What our community says:
The majority of CAPS All Stars see Piper Jaffray as a good bet, with 61.3% granting it an "outperform" rating. The majority of the Fools are in agreement with the All Stars as 59.4% give it an "outperform" rating. Fools are keen on the company, though the message boards have been quiet lately with only 35 posts in the past 30 days. Piper Jaffray's bearish CAPS rating of two out of five stars falls short of the Fool community sentiment.

Management:
Piper Jaffray's profit has risen year over year by an average of more than fourfold. The company's revenue has now risen for two straight quarters.

Now let's look at how efficient management is at running the business. Traditionally, margins represent the efficiency with which companies capture portions of sales dollars. The following table shows net margins over the past four quarters.

Quarter	Q1	Q4	Q3	Q2
Net Margin	5.4%	5.1%	5.7%	5.4%

For all our Piper Jaffray-specific analysis, including earnings and beyond, add Piper Jaffray to My Watchlist.

Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.