Cleco (NYSE: CNL) reported earnings on July 31. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended June 30 (Q2), Cleco beat expectations on revenues and missed estimates on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue expanded. Non-GAAP earnings per share contracted. GAAP earnings per share dropped.

Margins dropped across the board.

Revenue details
 Cleco notched revenue of $263.9 million. The one analyst polled by S&P Capital IQ looked for revenue of $249.5 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 9.9% higher than the prior-year quarter's $240.1 million.

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

EPS details
 EPS came in at $0.62. The four earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $0.65 per share. Non-GAAP EPS of $0.62 for Q2 were 3.1% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.64 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.69 for Q2 were 10% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.77 per share.

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

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 45.3%, 310 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 28.3%, 260 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 15.9%, 350 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. (Margins calculated in GAAP terms.)

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $311.7 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.06.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.01 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.52.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 83 members out of 90 rating the stock outperform, and seven members rating it underperform. Among 25 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 23 give Cleco a green thumbs-up, and two give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Cleco is outperform, with an average price target of $47.30.

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