Results: Mesa Laboratories, Inc. Beat Earnings Expectations And Analysts Now Have New Forecasts
As you might know, Mesa Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLAB) recently reported its quarterly numbers. It looks to have been a decent result overall - while revenue fell marginally short of analyst estimates at US$53m, statutory earnings beat expectations by a notable 875%, coming in at US$0.39 per share. This is an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance in its report, look at what experts are forecasting for next year, and see if there has been any change to expectations for the business. 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 Mesa Laboratories
Taking into account the latest results, the most recent consensus for Mesa Laboratories from three analysts is for revenues of US$237.0m in 2025. If met, it would imply a notable 11% increase on its revenue over the past 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to bounce 165% to US$0.47. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$242.7m and earnings per share (EPS) of US$0.99 in 2025. From this we can that sentiment has definitely become more bearish after the latest results, leading to lower revenue forecasts and a pretty serious reduction to earnings per share estimates.
The analysts made no major changes to their price target of US$127, suggesting the downgrades are not expected to have a long-term impact on Mesa Laboratories' valuation. Fixating on a single price target can be unwise though, since the consensus target is effectively the average of analyst price targets. As a result, some investors like to look at the range of estimates to see if there are any diverging opinions on the company's valuation. There are some variant perceptions on Mesa Laboratories, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at US$130 and the most bearish at US$124 per share. This is a very narrow spread of estimates, implying either that Mesa Laboratories is an easy company to value, or - more likely - the analysts are relying heavily on some key assumptions.
One way to get more context on these forecasts is to look at how they compare to both past performance, and how other companies in the same industry are performing. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that Mesa Laboratories' revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2025 expected to display 9.0% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 18% over the past five years. Juxtapose this against the other companies in the industry with analyst coverage, which are forecast to grow their revenues (in aggregate) 6.1% per year. Even after the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Mesa Laboratories is also expected to grow faster 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 Mesa Laboratories. They also downgraded Mesa Laboratories' revenue estimates, but industry data suggests that it is expected 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 Mesa Laboratories going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here..
That said, it's still necessary to consider the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 2 warning signs with Mesa Laboratories (at least 1 which is concerning) , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
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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.
