Ball (NYSE: BLL) reported earnings on July 25. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended June 30 (Q2), Ball missed estimates on revenues and met expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue dropped. Non-GAAP earnings per share dropped. GAAP earnings per share dropped significantly.

Gross margins grew, operating margins contracted, net margins dropped.

Revenue details
Ball reported revenue of $2.20 billion. The 10 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected revenue of $2.27 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 4.1% lower than the prior-year quarter's $2.30 billion.

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

EPS details
EPS came in at $0.85. The 13 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted $0.85 per share. Non-GAAP EPS of $0.85 for Q2 were 4.5% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.89 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.63 for Q2 were 28% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.88 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures are normalized by S&P Capital IQ and may vary to maintain comparability with normalized estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 18.3%, 60 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 10.3%, 20 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 4.3%, 180 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. (Margins calculated in GAAP terms.)

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $2.27 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.95.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $8.61 billion. The average EPS estimate is $3.14.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 245 members out of 257 rating the stock outperform, and 12 members rating it underperform. Among 86 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 82 give Ball 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 Ball is hold, with an average price target of $47.27.

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