GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft Just Missed EPS By 13%: Here's What Analysts Think Will Happen Next

Shareholders might have noticed that GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft (ETR:G1A) filed its full-year result this time last week. The early response was not positive, with shares down 2.3% to €56.55 in the past week. It was not a great result overall. While revenues of €5.4b were in line with analyst predictions, earnings were less than expected, missing statutory estimates by 13% to hit €2.30 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. So we gathered the latest post-earnings forecasts to see what estimates suggest is in store for next year.

See our latest analysis for GEA Group

After the latest results, the 13 analysts covering GEA Group are now predicting revenues of €5.57b in 2025. If met, this would reflect a satisfactory 2.7% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to step up 16% to €2.81. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of €5.54b and earnings per share (EPS) of €2.89 in 2025. So it looks like there's been a small decline in overall sentiment after the recent results - there's been no major change to revenue estimates, but the analysts did make a minor downgrade to their earnings per share forecasts.

It might be a surprise to learn that the consensus price target was broadly unchanged at €54.52, with the analysts clearly implying that the forecast decline in earnings is not expected to have much of an impact on valuation. 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. Currently, the most bullish analyst values GEA Group at €65.00 per share, while the most bearish prices it at €43.00. As you can see, analysts are not all in agreement on the stock's future, but the range of estimates is still reasonably narrow, which could suggest that the outcome is not totally unpredictable.

Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. The period to the end of 2025 brings more of the same, according to the analysts, with revenue forecast to display 2.7% growth on an annualised basis. That is in line with its 3.3% annual growth over the past five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in a similar industry are forecast to see their revenues grow 4.9% per year. So although GEA Group is expected to maintain its revenue growth rate, it's forecast to grow slower than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that the analysts downgraded their earnings per share estimates, showing that there has been a clear decline in sentiment following these results. On the plus side, there were no major changes to revenue estimates; although forecasts imply they will perform worse than the wider industry. The consensus price target held steady at €54.52, with the latest estimates not enough to have an impact on their price targets.

With that in mind, we wouldn't be too quick to come to a conclusion on GEA Group. Long-term earnings power is much more important than next year's profits. We have estimates - from multiple GEA Group analysts - going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Another thing to consider is whether management and directors have been buying or selling stock recently. We provide an overview of all open market stock trades for the last twelve months on our platform, here.

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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.