Ascena Retail Group (Nasdaq: ASNA) is expected to report Q2 earnings on March 4. 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 Ascena Retail Group's revenues will grow 42.9% and EPS will compress -43.9%.

The average estimate for revenue is $1.23 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.23.

Revenue details
 Last quarter, Ascena Retail Group reported revenue of $1.14 billion. GAAP reported sales were 48% higher than the prior-year quarter's $768.3 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 $0.39. GAAP EPS of $0.27 for Q1 were 10.0% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.30 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 59.4%, 220 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 8.8%, 220 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 3.8%, 240 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $4.77 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.24.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 238 members out of 266 rating the stock outperform, and 28 members rating it underperform. Among 84 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 80 give Ascena Retail Group a green thumbs-up, and four give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Ascena Retail Group is outperform, with an average price target of $26.33.

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