Analysts Have Made A Financial Statement On Virbac SA's (EPA:VIRP) First-Quarter Report

Shareholders might have noticed that Virbac SA (EPA:VIRP) filed its quarterly result this time last week. The early response was not positive, with shares down 3.7% to €314 in the past week. Results were roughly in line with estimates, with revenues of €375m and statutory earnings per share of €17.34. The analysts typically update their forecasts at each earnings report, and we can judge from their estimates whether their view of the company has changed or if there are any new concerns to be aware of. Readers will be glad to know we've aggregated the latest statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their mind on Virbac after the latest results.

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Taking into account the latest results, the consensus forecast from Virbac's eight analysts is for revenues of €1.47b in 2025. This reflects an okay 2.7% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to swell 18% to €18.69. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of €1.48b and earnings per share (EPS) of €18.81 in 2025. 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.

Check out our latest analysis for Virbac

It will come as no surprise then, to learn that the consensus price target is largely unchanged at €398. 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 Virbac at €429 per share, while the most bearish prices it at €346. Even so, with a relatively close grouping of estimates, it looks like the analysts are quite confident in their valuations, suggesting Virbac is an easy business to forecast or the the analysts are all using similar assumptions.

Looking at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can make sense of these forecasts is to see how they measure up against both past performance and industry growth estimates. We would highlight that Virbac's revenue growth is expected to slow, with the forecast 3.6% annualised growth rate until the end of 2025 being well below the historical 9.0% 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 4.8% per year. Factoring in the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Virbac is also expected to grow slower than other industry participants.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that there's been no major change in sentiment, with the analysts reconfirming that the business is performing in line with their previous earnings per share estimates. On the plus side, there were no major changes to revenue estimates; although forecasts imply they will 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.

Keeping that in mind, we still think that the longer term trajectory of the business is much more important for investors to consider. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Virbac going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here..

It might also be worth considering whether Virbac's debt load is appropriate, using our debt analysis tools on the Simply Wall St 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.