Material handling equipment manufacturer Columbus McKinnon (NASDAQ: CMCO) will be announcing earnings results this Thursday before market hours. Here’s what investors should know.

Columbus McKinnon beat analysts’ revenue expectations by 2.2% last quarter, reporting revenues of $235.9 million, down 1.6% year on year. It was a strong quarter for the company, with a solid beat of analysts’ revenue estimates and a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Is Columbus McKinnon a buy or sell going into earnings? Read our full analysis here, it’s free for active Edge members.

This quarter, analysts are expecting Columbus McKinnon’s revenue to be flat year on year at $240.6 million, improving from the 6.2% decrease it recorded in the same quarter last year. Adjusted earnings are expected to come in at $0.53 per share.

Analysts covering the company have generally reconfirmed their estimates over the last 30 days, suggesting they anticipate the business to stay the course heading into earnings. Columbus McKinnon has a history of exceeding Wall Street’s expectations, beating revenue estimates every single time since going public by 2.2% on average.

Looking at Columbus McKinnon’s peers in the general industrial machinery segment, some have already reported their Q3 results, giving us a hint as to what we can expect. Luxfer’s revenues decreased 6.5% year on year, meeting analysts’ expectations, and GE Aerospace reported revenues up 36.2%, topping estimates by 11.7%. GE Aerospace traded down 1.6% following the results.

Read our full analysis of Luxfer’s results here and GE Aerospace’s results here.

There has been positive sentiment among investors in the general industrial machinery segment, with share prices up 3.1% on average over the last month. Columbus McKinnon is up 8.9% during the same time and is heading into earnings with an average analyst price target of $28 (compared to the current share price of $15.70).

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