Yahoo Finance Earnings Miss: Liberty Energy Inc. Missed EPS By 10% And Analysts Are Revising Their Forecasts
Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT) last week reported its latest first-quarter results, which makes it a good time for investors to dive in and see if the business is performing in line with expectations. Revenues were in line with forecasts, at US$1.1b, although statutory earnings per share came in 10% below what the analysts expected, at US$0.48 per share. Following the result, the analysts have updated their earnings model, and it would be good to know whether they think there's been a strong change in the company's prospects, or if it's business as usual. 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 Liberty Energy
Following the latest results, Liberty Energy's 14 analysts are now forecasting revenues of US$4.65b in 2024. This would be an okay 2.0% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are forecast to fall 11% to US$2.55 in the same period. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of US$4.57b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$2.73 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.
It might be a surprise to learn that the consensus price target was broadly unchanged at US$24.47, with the analysts clearly implying that the forecast decline in earnings is not expected to have much of an impact on 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. The most optimistic Liberty Energy analyst has a price target of US$28.00 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$18.00. Analysts definitely have varying views on the business, but the spread of estimates is not wide enough in our view to suggest that extreme outcomes could await Liberty Energy shareholders.
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. We would highlight that Liberty Energy's revenue growth is expected to slow, with the forecast 2.7% annualised growth rate until the end of 2024 being well below the historical 26% p.a. growth over the last five years. By way of comparison, the other companies in this industry with analyst coverage are forecast to grow their revenue at 7.8% per year. So it's pretty clear that, while revenue growth is expected to slow down, the wider industry is also expected to grow faster than Liberty Energy.
The Bottom Line
The biggest concern is that the analysts reduced their earnings per share estimates, suggesting business headwinds could lay ahead for Liberty Energy. Fortunately, the analysts also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Although our data does suggest that Liberty Energy'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 Liberty Energy going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here..
Plus, you should also learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Liberty Energy (including 1 which is concerning) .
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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.
