Penn West Petroleum (NYSE: PWE) is expected to report Q3 earnings on Nov. 2. 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 Penn West Petroleum's revenues will wither -17.9% and EPS will shrink to a loss.

The average estimate for revenue is $749.7 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is -$0.03.

Revenue details
 Last quarter, Penn West Petroleum logged revenue of $970.6 million. GAAP reported sales were 25% lower than the prior-year quarter's $810.8 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, EPS came in at $0.49. GAAP EPS of $0.49 for Q2 were 18% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.60 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 57.9%, 710 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 60.8%, 2,460 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 37.7%, 300 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $3.16 billion. The average EPS estimate is $0.28.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 1,343 members out of 1,392 rating the stock outperform, and 49 members rating it underperform. Among 293 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 284 give Penn West Petroleum a green thumbs-up, and nine give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Penn West Petroleum is hold, with an average price target of $24.45.

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