J. C. Penney (NYSE: JCP) reported earnings on Aug. 10. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended July 28 (Q2), J. C. Penney missed estimates on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue shrank significantly and GAAP earnings per share dropped to a loss.

Margins shrank across the board.

Revenue details
 J. C. Penney reported revenue of $3.02 billion. The 17 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected net sales of $3.21 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 23% lower than the prior-year quarter's $3.91 billion.

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

EPS details
 EPS came in at -$0.37. The seven earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted -$0.07 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.67 for Q2 against $0.07 per share for the prior-year quarter.

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

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 33.2%, 510 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -0.8%, 350 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -4.9%, 530 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $3.48 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.08.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $14.99 billion. The average EPS estimate is $0.94.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a one-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 621 members out of 906 rating the stock outperform, and 285 members rating it underperform. Among 214 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 145 give J. C. Penney a green thumbs-up, and 69 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on J. C. Penney is hold, with an average price target of $28.53.

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