Life Technologies (Nasdaq: LIFE) is expected to report Q3 earnings on Oct. 29. 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 Life Technologies's revenues will wither -2.1% and EPS will shrink -5.3%.

The average estimate for revenue is $908.8 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.89.

Revenue details
 Last quarter, Life Technologies recorded revenue of $949.6 million. GAAP reported sales were 0.9% higher than the prior-year quarter's $941.1 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 $0.96. GAAP EPS of $0.67 for Q2 were 29% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.52 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 65.4%, 150 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 20.4%, 140 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 12.9%, 280 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $3.79 billion. The average EPS estimate is $3.95.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 215 members out of 227 rating the stock outperform, and 12 members rating it underperform. Among 68 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 65 give Life Technologies a green thumbs-up, and three give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Life Technologies is outperform, with an average price target of $53.47.