Edgewell Personal Care Company Just Beat EPS By 80%: Here's What Analysts Think Will Happen Next
It's been a good week for Edgewell Personal Care Company (NYSE:EPC) shareholders, because the company has just released its latest first-quarter results, and the shares gained 5.7% to US$39.45. Revenues were US$489m, approximately in line with whatthe analysts expected, although statutory earnings per share (EPS) crushed expectations, coming in at US$0.09, an impressive 80% ahead of estimates. 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.
See our latest analysis for Edgewell Personal Care
Taking into account the latest results, Edgewell Personal Care's eight analysts currently expect revenues in 2024 to be US$2.31b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to climb 20% to US$2.57. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$2.30b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$2.68 in 2024. The analysts seem to have become a little more negative on the business after the latest results, given the small dip in their earnings per share numbers for next year.
The consensus price target held steady at US$44.22, with the analysts seemingly voting that their lower forecast earnings are not expected to lead to a lower stock price in the foreseeable future. There's another way to think about price targets though, and that's to look at the range of price targets put forward by analysts, because a wide range of estimates could suggest a diverse view on possible outcomes for the business. The most optimistic Edgewell Personal Care analyst has a price target of US$53.00 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$34.00. This shows there is still a bit of diversity in estimates, but analysts don't appear to be totally split on the stock as though it might be a success or failure situation.
Taking a look at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can understand these forecasts is to see how they compare to both past performance and industry growth estimates. It's clear from the latest estimates that Edgewell Personal Care's rate of growth is expected to accelerate meaningfully, with the forecast 2.2% annualised revenue growth to the end of 2024 noticeably faster than its historical growth of 1.2% p.a. over the past five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in a similar industry are forecast to grow their revenue at 7.1% per year. It seems obvious that, while the future growth outlook is brighter than the recent past, Edgewell Personal Care is expected to grow slower than the wider industry.
The Bottom Line
The biggest concern is that the analysts reduced their earnings per share estimates, suggesting business headwinds could lay ahead for Edgewell Personal Care. Fortunately, the analysts also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Although our data does suggest that Edgewell Personal Care's revenue is expected to perform worse 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 Edgewell Personal Care going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here..
Don't forget that there may still be risks. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Edgewell Personal Care that you should be aware of.
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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. 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.
