Société BIC SA (EPA:BB) Just Reported Half-Year Earnings: Have Analysts Changed Their Mind On The Stock?

As you might know, Société BIC SA (EPA:BB) recently reported its half-yearly numbers. Société BIC reported in line with analyst predictions, delivering revenues of €1.1b and statutory earnings per share of €5.30, suggesting the business is executing well and in line with its plan. 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. We thought readers would find it interesting to see the analysts latest (statutory) post-earnings forecasts for next year.

View our latest analysis for Société BIC

Following last week's earnings report, Société BIC's six analysts are forecasting 2024 revenues to be €2.26b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to accumulate 2.4% to €5.32. Before this earnings report, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of €2.26b and earnings per share (EPS) of €5.33 in 2024. The consensus analysts don't seem to have seen anything in these results that would have changed their view on the business, given there's been no major change to their estimates.

The analysts reconfirmed their price target of €70.00, showing that the business is executing well and in line with expectations. 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. There are some variant perceptions on Société BIC, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at €82.00 and the most bearish at €62.00 per share. Still, with such a tight range of estimates, it suggeststhe analysts have a pretty good idea of what they think the company is worth.

Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. We would highlight that Société BIC'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 5.4% p.a. growth over the last five years. Compare this against other companies (with analyst forecasts) in the industry, which are in aggregate expected to see revenue growth of 4.8% annually. Factoring in the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Société BIC is also expected to grow slower than other industry participants.

The Bottom Line

The most obvious conclusion is that there's been no major change in the business' prospects in recent times, with the analysts holding their earnings forecasts steady, in line with previous estimates. 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 €70.00, with the latest estimates not enough to have an impact on their price targets.

With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. We have estimates - from multiple Société BIC analysts - going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

However, before you get too enthused, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Société BIC that you should be aware of.

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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.

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