Education Management (Nasdaq: EDMC) is expected to report Q4 earnings on Aug. 8. 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 Education Management's revenues will compress -7.5% and EPS will drop -71.4%.

The average estimate for revenue is $643.3 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.08.

Revenue details
Last quarter, Education Management booked revenue of $702.5 million. GAAP reported sales were 6.9% lower than the prior-year quarter's $754.3 million.

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, non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.33. GAAP EPS were -$3.31 for Q3 versus $0.53 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 46.0%, 340 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 13.4%, 580 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -59.4%, 6,910 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
The full year's average estimate for revenue is $2.76 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.13.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a one-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 32 members out of 58 rating the stock outperform, and 26 members rating it underperform. Among 14 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), four give Education Management a green thumbs-up, and 10 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Education Management is hold, with an average price target of $19.40.

Over the decades, small-cap stocks, like Education Management have provided market-beating returns, provided they're value priced and have solid businesses. Read about a pair of companies with a lock on their markets in "Too Small to Fail: Two Small Caps the Government Won't Let Go Broke." Click here for instant access to this free report.