Earnings Preview: United Technologies

United Technologies (UTX) is expected to report Q1 earnings before market open Thursday, with a conference call scheduled for 10:00 am EDT.

Guidance

Analysts are looking for an EPS of $1.01 on revenue of $13.4B. The consensus range is 97c to $1.07 for EPS, and revenue of $13.11B to $13.91B, according to First Call. United Technologies gave guidance for FY08 EPS back in January, expecting $4.65 to $4.85 including the impact of the company's proposed acquisition of Diebold (DBD) at $40 per share vs. a consensus of $4.86. This outlook was reiterated by the company on March 3.

On March 27, Diebold commented on United Technologies' press release disclosing its 3.5% stake in Diebold, stating it believes United Technologies' $40 per share offer significantly undervalues the company and does not reflect significant progress against current strategic initiatives and Diebold's previously disclosed $100M cost-reduction program. The companies have yet to reach a mutual agreement, and investors will be listening on the conference call for any further developments on the potential acquisition.

Analyst Views

On March 24, Bernstein lowered its target on United Technologies to $87 from $90, as they believe a downturn in U.S. commercial construction is likely within the next 12 months. Bernstein did, however, maintain its Outperform rating for the company. On April 14, Cowen announced that it expects United Technologies to report revenues of $13.9B+ and sees concerns as overdone due to the company's safer business mix.