Fundamentals

Earnings Report

Also called: earnings season, earnings date

A company's quarterly results release — often the single biggest scheduled catalyst, capable of gapping a stock sharply up or down.

Public companies report revenue and earnings every quarter, and the market reacts to the result versus expectations and to forward guidance. A beat-and-raise can gap a stock up double digits; a miss or weak guidance can do the reverse. The clustered weeks when most companies report are 'earnings season.'

Earnings are a known, dated risk: holding through a report exposes you to a binary gap you can't stop out of. Some traders avoid earnings entirely, while others trade the post-earnings drift — a strong, high-volume reaction (a power earnings gap) often continues for weeks.

On StockSetups

StockSetups flags days-to-earnings, whether a name reports soon, the last EPS surprise, and a power-earnings-gap score, so you can avoid unwanted earnings risk or hunt for post-earnings continuation setups.

Frequently asked

Should I hold a stock through earnings?

It's a binary risk — earnings can gap a stock sharply in either direction overnight, past any stop. Many traders reduce or close positions before a report and re-enter once the reaction is clear; others specialize in trading the post-earnings move.

Related terms

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