RPM International (NYSE: RPM) met its estimates last quarter, but investors hope it will beat them this quarter. The company will unveil its latest earnings on Thursday. RPM International manufactures, markets and sells various specialty chemical product lines, including high-quality specialty paints, protective coatings, roofing systems, sealants, and adhesives.

What analysts say:

  • Buy, sell, or hold?: Analysts are bullish on RPM International as three analysts rate it as a buy and only one analyst rates it as a sell. Analysts like RPM International better than competitor Valspar overall. While analysts still rate the stock a hold, they are a little more optimistic about it compared to three months ago.
  • Revenue forecasts: On average, analysts predict $898.1 million in revenue this quarter. That would represent a rise of 8.7% from the year-ago quarter.
  • Wall Street earnings expectations: The average analyst estimate is earnings of $0.38 per share. Estimates range from $0.36 to $0.42.

What our community says:
CAPS All-Stars are solidly behind the stock with 97.9% granting it an outperform rating. The community at large agrees with the All-Stars with 93.5% giving it a rating of outperform. Fools have embraced RPM International and haven't been shy with their opinions lately, logging 125 posts in the past 30 days. Even with a robust four out of five stars, RPM International's CAPS rating falls a little short of the community's upbeat outlook.

Management:
RPM International's income has fallen year over year by an average of 24.3% over the past five quarters. Revenue has now gone up for three straight quarters.

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 gross, operating, and net margins over the past four quarters.

Quarter

Q1

Q4

Q3

Q2

Gross Margin

41.5%

42.4%

39.7%

41.1%

Operating Margin

13.8%

12.2%

2.0%

10.8%

Net Margin

7.8%

7.1%

0.2%

5.9%

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Earnings estimates provided by Zacks