Aéropostale (NYSE: ARO) reported earnings on May 23. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended May 4 (Q1), Aéropostale beat slightly on revenues and exceeded expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue dropped. GAAP earnings per share contracted to a loss.

Margins dropped across the board.

Revenue details
 Aéropostale booked revenue of $452.3 million. The 23 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ hoped for revenue of $444.6 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 9.0% lower than the prior-year quarter's $497.2 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 EPS came in at -$0.16. The 25 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted -$0.17 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.16 for Q1 compared to $0.13 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 22.4%, 560 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -4.5%, 790 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -2.7%, 480 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. (Margins calculated in GAAP terms.)

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $462.4 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is -$0.17.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $2.35 billion. The average EPS estimate is $0.38.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 891 members out of 960 rating the stock outperform, and 69 members rating it underperform. Among 243 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 232 give Aéropostale a green thumbs-up, and 11 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Aéropostale is hold, with an average price target of $14.58.

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