National Oilwell Varco (NYSE: NOV) reported earnings on April 25. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), National Oilwell Varco met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue increased significantly and GAAP earnings per share grew significantly.

Gross margins contracted, operating margins improved, and net margins increased.

Revenue details
National Oilwell Varco tallied revenue of $4.30 billion. The 16 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ wanted to see revenue of $4.30 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 37% higher than the prior-year quarter's $3.15 billion.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $1.44. The 23 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $1.39 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $1.42 for Q1 were 48% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.96 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 29.5%, 150 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 20.5%, 110 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 14.1%, 120 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $4.39 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.44.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $18.01 billion. The average EPS estimate is $6.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 3,403 members out of 3,454 rating the stock outperform, and 51 members rating it underperform. Among 868 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 860 give National Oilwell Varco a green thumbs-up, and eight give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on National Oilwell Varco is outperform, with an average price target of $94.31.

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