UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) is expected to report Q3 earnings on Oct. 16. 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 UnitedHealth Group's revenues will grow 9.1% and EPS will increase 13.7%.

The average estimate for revenue is $27.59 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.33.

Revenue details
 Last quarter, UnitedHealth Group recorded revenue of $27.27 billion. GAAP reported sales were 8.0% higher than the prior-year quarter's $25.23 billion.

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, EPS came in at $1.27. GAAP EPS of $1.27 for Q2 were 9.5% higher than the prior-year quarter's $1.16 per share.

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 26.6%, 20 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 8.2%, 10 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 4.9%, 10 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $110.00 billion. The average EPS estimate is $5.10.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 3,297 members out of 3,451 rating the stock outperform, and 154 members rating it underperform. Among 980 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 959 give UnitedHealth Group a green thumbs-up, and 21 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on UnitedHealth Group is outperform, with an average price target of $68.38.