Contango Oil & Gas (AMEX: MCF) is expected to report Q3 earnings around Feb. 16. 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 Contango Oil & Gas's revenues will grow 4.0% and EPS will compress -7.3%.

The average estimate for revenue is $43.0 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.89.

Revenue details
 Last quarter, Contango Oil & Gas chalked up revenue of $34.9 million. GAAP reported sales were 35% lower than the prior-year quarter's $53.9 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, EPS came in at $0.17. GAAP EPS of $0.17 for Q2 were 87% lower than the prior-year quarter's $1.27 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 85.8%, 120 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 11.7%, 4,590 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 7.5%, 2,860 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $155.5 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.79.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 507 members out of 523 rating the stock outperform, and 16 members rating it underperform. Among 139 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 135 give Contango Oil & Gas a green thumbs-up, and four give it a red thumbs-down.

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