National Instruments (Nasdaq: NATI) is expected to report Q1 earnings on April 25. 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 National Instruments's revenues will grow 10.3% and EPS will expand 62.5%.

The average estimate for revenue is $288.1 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.26.

Revenue details
 Last quarter, National Instruments booked revenue of $300.3 million. GAAP reported sales were 8.0% higher than the prior-year quarter's $278.1 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 $0.29. GAAP EPS of $0.16 for Q4 were 20% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.20 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 75.1%, 70 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 11.7%, 10 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 6.9%, 180 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $1.26 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.22.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 377 members out of 397 rating the stock outperform, and 20 members rating it underperform. Among 167 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 163 give National Instruments a green thumbs-up, and four give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on National Instruments is outperform, with an average price target of $28.00.

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