Mercury Systems (Nasdaq: MRCY) is expected to report Q4 earnings on Aug. 6. 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 Mercury Systems's revenues will decrease -15.8% and EPS will shrink to a loss.

The average estimate for revenue is $51.2 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is -$0.09.

Revenue details
 Last quarter, Mercury Systems reported revenue of $54.1 million. GAAP reported sales were 19% lower than the prior-year quarter's $67.0 million.

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
 Last quarter, non-GAAP EPS came in at -$0.02. GAAP EPS of $0.03 for Q3 were 82% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.17 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.

Recent performance
 For the preceding quarter, gross margin was 41.7%, much worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -2.2%, much worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 1.5%, 630 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $204.6 million. The average EPS estimate is -$0.46.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a one-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 43 members out of 105 rating the stock outperform, and 62 members rating it underperform. Among 37 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 16 give Mercury Systems a green thumbs-up, and 21 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Mercury Systems is outperform, with an average price target of $8.75.

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