Analysts Have Made A Financial Statement On Flight Centre Travel Group Limited's (ASX:FLT) Interim Report

Flight Centre Travel Group Limited (ASX:FLT) came out with its interim results last week, and we wanted to see how the business is performing and what industry forecasters think of the company following this report. It was a workmanlike result, with revenues of AU$1.3b coming in 3.5% ahead of expectations, and statutory earnings per share of AU$0.23, in line with analyst appraisals. 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. So we gathered the latest post-earnings forecasts to see what estimates suggest is in store for next year.

Check out our latest analysis for Flight Centre Travel Group

Taking into account the latest results, the most recent consensus for Flight Centre Travel Group from 17 analysts is for revenues of AU$2.85b in 2024. If met, it would imply a decent 11% increase on its revenue over the past 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to bounce 36% to AU$0.96. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of AU$2.80b and earnings per share (EPS) of AU$0.92 in 2024. It looks like there's been a modest increase in sentiment following the latest results, withthe analysts becoming a bit more optimistic in their predictions for both revenues and earnings.

Despite these upgrades,the analysts have not made any major changes to their price target of AU$22.84, suggesting that the higher estimates are not likely to have a long term impact on what the stock is worth. 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. There are some variant perceptions on Flight Centre Travel Group, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at AU$27.27 and the most bearish at AU$19.00 per share. There are definitely some different views on the stock, but the range of estimates is not wide enough as to imply that the situation is unforecastable, in our view.

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. One thing stands out from these estimates, which is that Flight Centre Travel Group is forecast to grow faster in the future than it has in the past, with revenues expected to display 24% annualised growth until the end of 2024. If achieved, this would be a much better result than the 13% annual decline over the past five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the industry are forecast to see their revenue grow 6.7% per year. So it looks like Flight Centre Travel Group is expected to grow faster than its competitors, at least for a while.

The Bottom Line

The biggest takeaway for us is the consensus earnings per share upgrade, which suggests a clear improvement in sentiment around Flight Centre Travel Group's earnings potential next year. Pleasantly, they also upgraded their revenue estimates, and their forecasts suggest the business is expected to grow faster than the wider industry. The consensus price target held steady at AU$22.84, with the latest estimates not enough to have an impact on their price targets.

Keeping that in mind, we still think that the longer term trajectory of the business is much more important for investors to consider. We have estimates - from multiple Flight Centre Travel Group analysts - going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Plus, you should also learn about the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Flight Centre Travel Group .

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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.