Hercules Offshore (Nasdaq: HERO) reported earnings on Oct. 25. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended Sep. 30 (Q3), Hercules Offshore met expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue grew and GAAP loss per share grew.

Gross margins expanded, operating margins expanded, net margins dropped.

Revenue details
 Hercules Offshore reported revenue of $184.9 million. The 13 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ predicted revenue of $183.3 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 13% higher than the prior-year quarter's $163.0 million.

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 -$0.10. The 20 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated -$0.09 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.24 for Q3 versus -$0.12 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 53.7%, 2,200 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 23.1%, 2,470 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -20.5%, 1,010 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $197.5 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is -$0.03.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $701.8 million. The average EPS estimate is -$0.50.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 1,563 members out of 1,629 rating the stock outperform, and 66 members rating it underperform. Among 363 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 353 give Hercules Offshore a green thumbs-up, and 10 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Hercules Offshore is outperform, with an average price target of $5.51.

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