Water Modernization And Digital Transformation Will Shape Future Success

Key Takeaways

• Strong momentum in digital transformation and infrastructure modernization drives sustainable revenue and margin growth across high-priority markets.
  
• Strategic focus on consulting, technology, and disciplined capital returns bolsters higher-quality earnings and increasing shareholder value.
  
• Reliance on public sector spending, capital-intensive growth initiatives, and project execution risks expose Jacobs to revenue volatility, margin pressure, and potential earnings underperformance.

Catalysts

Engages in the infrastructure and advanced facilities, and consulting businesses in the United States, Europe, Canada, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Africa.

• Record-high backlog growth (up 14% year-over-year) in Water, Advanced Facilities, and Critical Infrastructure-driven by global infrastructure modernization, water scarcity, and data center expansion-provides strong visibility into multi-year revenue growth and supports confidence in accelerating top-line results into FY '26 and beyond.
  
• Rapid adoption of digital transformation-exemplified by growing Digital Twin engagements, the transformational NVIDIA Omniverse partnership, and expanding AI/data center projects-positions Jacobs to capture high-margin, recurring digital services revenue, further supporting sustainable net margin and EPS growth.
  
• Rising public and private sector investments in climate adaptation, water modernization, and decarbonization projects (Marinus Link, advanced wastewater reuse, resilient transportation) are fueling durable demand for Jacobs' integrated solutions, expected to drive strong revenue growth across high-priority markets.
  
• Continued strategic shift toward consulting and technology-driven solutions (notably PA Consulting's double-digit growth and operating margins above 20%) is improving business mix, expanding operating margins, and supporting higher future earnings quality and EPS growth.
  
• Enhanced capital return strategy, robust cash flows, and margin self-help initiatives (including disciplined cost management and margin improvements) are enabling material share repurchases and dividend growth, directly supporting EPS accretion and overall shareholder value.

Jacobs Solutions Future Earnings and Revenue Growth

Assumptions

• Analysts are assuming Jacobs Solutions's revenue will grow by 11.1% annually over the next 3 years.
• Analysts assume that profit margins will increase from 3.9% today to 6.8% in 3 years time.
• Analysts expect earnings to reach $973.6 million (and earnings per share of $8.82) by about August 2028, up from $409.0 million today.
• In order for the above numbers to justify the analysts price target, the company would need to trade at a PE ratio of 27.5x on those 2028 earnings, down from 42.6x today. This future PE is greater than the current PE for the US Professional Services industry at 22.5x.
• Analysts expect the number of shares outstanding to grow by 7.0% per year for the next 3 years.
• To value all of this in today's terms, we will use a discount rate of 7.29%, as per the Simply Wall St company report.

Jacobs Solutions Future Earnings Per Share Growth

Risks

• Jacobs' ongoing success is partially reliant on robust government and public sector spending, especially in Water, Transportation, and Defense; any shifts in fiscal policy, budget cuts, or political instability (as seen in U.K. infrastructure delays and uncertainty about U.S. federal funding allocations) could introduce revenue volatility and jeopardize long-term backlog and top-line growth.
  
• Although the company is diversifying and investing in high-growth markets like Data Centers and Life Sciences, these areas can experience rapid technological change and shifting client expectations, potentially requiring large, continual investments in digital solutions and AI capabilities; such capital intensity and the risk of misallocation could compress net margins and strain cash flows if growth slows or competition intensifies.
  
• Jacobs is benefitting from secular tailwinds like infrastructure modernization and climate adaptation; however, macroeconomic risks such as rising interest rates and tighter credit markets could dampen global infrastructure and capital spending, leading to delayed or canceled projects and adversely impacting both revenue and earnings.
  
• The company's backlog growth is weighted toward longer-tail Water and Infrastructure projects, which, while providing revenue visibility, may expose Jacobs to project execution risks, cost overruns, and potential regulatory changes over multi-year timeframes-negatively affecting margins or resulting in earnings revisions if not managed effectively.
  
• Integration and performance risk remain around acquisitions (e.g., PA Consulting) and business separations; any difficulty in extracting anticipated synergies or achieving organizational efficiencies-especially as Jacobs shifts toward higher-value consulting-could result in elevated operating expenses, underperformance in intended margin improvement, and downward pressure on overall earnings.

Valuation

• The analysts have a consensus price target of $148.741 for Jacobs Solutions based on their expectations of its future earnings growth, profit margins and other risk factors. However, there is a degree of disagreement amongst analysts, with the most bullish reporting a price target of $166.0, and the most bearish reporting a price target of just $123.0.
  
• In order for you to agree with the analyst's consensus, you'd need to believe that by 2028, revenues will be $14.4 billion, earnings will come to $973.6 million, and it would be trading on a PE ratio of 27.5x, assuming you use a discount rate of 7.3%.
  
• Given the current share price of $145.21, the analyst price target of $148.74 is 2.4% higher. The relatively low difference between the current share price and the analyst consensus price target indicates that they believe on average, the company is fairly priced.
  
• We always encourage you to reach your own conclusions though. So sense check these analyst numbers against your own assumptions and expectations based on your understanding of the business and what you believe is probable.