While Parker Hannifin (NYSE: PH) missed estimates last quarter, investors hope that it will bounce back and outpace Wall Street expectations this quarter. The company will unveil its latest earnings Tuesday. Parker Hannifin manufactures motion and control technologies and systems, including electromechanical controls, fluid power systems, and related components.

What analysts say:

  • Buy, sell, or hold?: Analysts think investors should stand pat on Parker Hannifin with eight of 13 analysts rating it hold. Analysts don't like Parker Hannifin as much as competitor Eaton overall. Nine out of 16 analysts rate Eaton a buy compared with five of 13 for Parker Hannifin. While analysts still rate the stock a hold, they are a little more optimistic about it compared with three months ago.
  • Revenue Forecasts: On average, analysts predict $3.2 billion in revenue this quarter. That would represent a rise of 13.1% from the year-ago quarter.
  • Wall Street Earnings Expectations: The average analyst estimate is earnings of $1.70 per share. Estimates range from $1.62 to $1.80.

What our community says:
CAPS All-Stars are solidly backing the stock with 99.4% giving it an "outperform" rating. The community at large agrees with the All-Stars with 96.9% assigning it a rating of "outperform." Fools are bullish on Parker Hannifin and haven't been shy with their opinions lately, logging 151 posts in the past 30 days. Even with a robust four out of five stars, Parker Hannifin's CAPS rating falls a little short of the community's upbeat outlook.

Management:
Parker Hannifin's profit has risen year over year by an average of more than twofold over the past five 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 gross, operating, and net margins over the past four quarters.

Quarter

Q4

Q3

Q2

Q1

Gross Margin

24.0%

24.0%

23.4%

24.4%

Operating Margin

9.0%

12.4%

11.3%

12.6%

Net Margin

8.6%

8.6%

8.0%

8.7%

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