What Do Investors Need To Know About Huntsworth plc's (LON:HNT) Future?
Looking at Huntsworth plc's (LON:HNT) earnings update in December 2018, analyst consensus outlook seem pessimistic, with profits predicted to drop by 2.8% next year relative to the past 5-year average growth rate of 37%. Currently with a trailing-twelve-month profit of UK£21m, the consensus growth rate suggests that earnings will drop to UK£21m by 2020. Below is a brief commentary around Huntsworth's earnings outlook going forward, which may give you a sense of market sentiment for the company. Investors wanting to learn more about other aspects of the company should research its fundamentals here.
View our latest analysis for Huntsworth
Exciting times ahead?
Longer term expectations from the 3 analysts covering HNT’s stock is one of positive sentiment. Broker analysts tend to forecast up to three years ahead due to a lack of clarity around the business trajectory beyond this. To reduce the year-on-year volatility of analyst earnings forecast, I've inserted a line of best fit through the expected earnings figures to determine the annual growth rate from the slope of the line.
This results in an annual growth rate of 20% based on the most recent earnings level of UK£21m to the final forecast of UK£36m by 2022. EPS reaches £0.092 in the final year of forecast compared to the current £0.064 EPS today. With a current profit margin of 9.5%, this movement will result in a margin of 12% by 2022.
Next Steps:
Future outlook is only one aspect when you're building an investment case for a stock. For Huntsworth, I've put together three essential factors you should look at:
Financial Health: Does it have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at our free balance sheet analysis with six simple checks on key factors like leverage and risk.
Valuation: What is Huntsworth worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? The intrinsic value infographic in our free research report helps visualize whether Huntsworth is currently mispriced by the market.
Other High-Growth Alternatives : Are there other high-growth stocks you could be holding instead of Huntsworth? Explore our interactive list of stocks with large growth potential to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
