Okuzeka
Investing & the Stock Market vocabulary · Valuation & Ratios

Earnings per share

Meaning in investing & the stock market, with examples

/ˌɜːrnɪŋz pər ˈʃer/nounCore term

In investing & the stock market, earnings per share means: A company's net profit for a period divided by the number of its shares. It shows how much profit belongs to each single share.

In Turkish: hisse başına kar, pay başına kar, HBK

How it is used

Usually shortened to EPS and said letter by letter. Analysts forecast it, companies report it every quarter, and news reports say whether earnings per share beat or missed expectations. Diluted EPS also counts shares that could be created later, such as from options.

Example sentences

  1. Earnings per share rose to 4.20 lira, ahead of the analysts' forecast of 3.90.

  2. The buyback increased earnings per share because profit was shared among fewer shares.

Common collocations

  • earnings per share rose
  • EPS forecast
  • beat EPS estimates
  • diluted earnings per share
  • P/E ratioShort for price-to-earnings ratio: a company's share price divided by its earnings per share. It shows how much investors pay for each unit of yearly profit.
  • earnings reportA company's official announcement of its revenue, profit and other financial results for a quarter or a year, often with comments on what it expects next.
  • share buybackA company buying back its own shares from the market, which reduces the number of shares available and returns cash to shareholders in a different way from dividends.
  • return on equityA company's net profit divided by its shareholders' equity, shown as a percentage. It measures how much profit a company makes with the money its owners have invested.

More terms: Valuation & Ratios

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not financial advice.