American Greetings (NYSE: AM) is expected to report Q3 earnings on Dec. 20. 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 American Greetings's revenues will grow 15.0% and EPS will expand 10.0%.

The average estimate for revenue is $533.0 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.55.

Revenue details
 Last quarter, American Greetings chalked up revenue of $393.8 million. GAAP reported sales were 6.4% higher than the prior-year quarter's $370.2 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 $0.25. GAAP EPS were -$0.13 for Q2 against $0.35 per share for the prior-year quarter.

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 55.1%, 220 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 0.5%, 630 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -1.1%, 500 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $1.87 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.01.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a two-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 118 members out of 192 rating the stock outperform, and 74 members rating it underperform. Among 69 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 45 give American Greetings a green thumbs-up, and 24 give it a red thumbs-down.

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