Cree (Nasdaq: CREE) reported earnings on Jan. 17. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 25 (Q2), Cree missed slightly on revenues and missed on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue expanded significantly, and earnings per share shrank significantly.

Margins dropped across the board.

Revenue details
Cree reported revenue of $304 million. The 28 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected revenue of $310 million. Sales were 18% higher than the prior-year quarter's $257 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.25. The 28 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.26 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.10 for Q2 were 78% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.45 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Figures may be non-GAAP to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 34.6%, 1,250 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 4.2%, 1,750 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 4.0%, 1,540 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $321 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.30.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.2 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.17.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 1,114 members out of 1,203 rating the stock outperform, and 89 members rating it underperform. Among 244 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 228 give Cree a green thumbs-up, and 16 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Cree is outperform, with an average price target of $35.09.