Whether or not a more highly leveraged firm will have higher or lower earnings per share depends on whether or not they are operating above or below the breakeven point.
In firms that are less highly leveraged, the company has lower fixed costs. Because fixed costs are lower, profits as a percentage of sales fluctuate less as the level of sales changes than would be the case for a more highly leveraged firm. This will lead to less volatile, more stable earnings per share.
The more highly leveraged a firm is, the more volatile their earnings per share will be. This is because they have more fixed costs which will cause profits as a percentage of sales to fluctuate more as sales fluctuates.
Whether or not a less highly leveraged firm will have higher or lower earnings per share depends on whether or not they are operating above or below the breakeven point.
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