Earnings Beat: Echo Global Logistics, Inc. Just Beat Analyst Forecasts, And Analysts Have Been Updating Their Models
Echo Global Logistics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECHO) just released its latest third-quarter results and things are looking bullish. It was a solid earnings report, with revenues and statutory earnings per share (EPS) both coming in strong. Revenues were 14% higher than the analysts had forecast, at US$691m, while EPS were US$0.26 beating analyst models by 39%. Earnings are an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance, look at what the analysts are forecasting for next year, and see if there's been a change in sentiment towards the company. With this in mind, we've gathered the latest statutory forecasts to see what the analysts are expecting for next year.
Check out our latest analysis for Echo Global Logistics
After the latest results, the ten analysts covering Echo Global Logistics are now predicting revenues of US$2.60b in 2021. If met, this would reflect a decent 14% improvement in sales compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to jump 285% to US$0.94. Before this earnings report, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$2.48b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$0.84 in 2021. There's been a pretty noticeable increase in sentiment, with the analysts upgrading revenues and making a nice increase in earnings per share in particular.
Althoughthe analysts have upgraded their earnings estimates, there was no change to the consensus price target of US$29.59, suggesting that the forecast performance does not have a long term impact on the company's valuation. The consensus price target is just an average of individual analyst targets, so - it could be handy to see how wide the range of underlying estimates is. There are some variant perceptions on Echo Global Logistics, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at US$33.00 and the most bearish at US$21.50 per share. These price targets show that analysts do have some differing views on the business, but the estimates do not vary enough to suggest to us that some are betting on wild success or utter failure.
Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. It's clear from the latest estimates that Echo Global Logistics' rate of growth is expected to accelerate meaningfully, with the forecast 14% revenue growth noticeably faster than its historical growth of 9.1%p.a. over the past five years. Compare this with other companies in the same industry, which are forecast to grow their revenue 6.2% next year. It seems obvious that, while the growth outlook is brighter than the recent past, the analysts also expect Echo Global Logistics to grow faster than the wider industry.
The Bottom Line
The most important thing here is that the analysts upgraded their earnings per share estimates, suggesting that there has been a clear increase in optimism towards Echo Global Logistics following these results. Happily, they also upgraded their revenue estimates, and are forecasting revenues to grow faster than the wider industry. There was no real change to the consensus price target, suggesting that the intrinsic value of the business has not undergone any major changes with the latest estimates.
With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Echo Global Logistics going out to 2024, and you can see them free on our platform here..
Don't forget that there may still be risks. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for Echo Global Logistics that you should be aware of.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
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