AMERIGROUP Earnings Preview

Watch AMERIGROUP's (NYSE: AGP) earnings report to see whether it can beat analyst expectations for the fifth consecutive quarter. The company will unveil its latest earnings on Friday. Amerigroup focuses on serving people who receive healthcare benefits through publicly sponsored programs, including Medicaid, Children's Health Insurance Program, Medicaid expansion programs, and Medicare Advantage.

What analysts say:

• Buy, sell, or hold? Analysts think investors should stand pat on AMERIGROUP with nine of 15 analysts rating it hold. Analysts like AMERIGROUP better than competitor WellCare Health Plans overall. One out of 10 analysts rate WellCare Health Plans a buy compared with six of 15 for AMERIGROUP. While analysts still rate the stock a hold, they are a little more optimistic about it compared with three months ago.
• Revenue Forecasts: On average, analysts predict $1.56 billion in revenue this quarter. That would represent a rise of 8.3% from the year-ago quarter.
• Wall Street Earnings Expectations: The average analyst estimate is earnings of $1.10 per share. Estimates range from $0.90 to $1.35.

What our community says:
CAPS All Stars are solidly behind the stock with 95.8% granting it an "outperform" rating. The community at large backs the All Stars, with 90.3% giving it a rating of "outperform." Fools are bullish on AMERIGROUP, though the message boards have been quiet lately with only 81 posts in the past 30 days. Even with a robust four out of five stars, AMERIGROUP's CAPS rating falls a little short of the community's upbeat outlook.

Management:
AMERIGROUP's profit has risen year over year by an average of more than twofold.

Now let's look at how efficient management is at running the business. Traditionally, margins represent the efficiency with which companies capture portions of sales dollars. The following table shows net margins over the past four quarters.

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