Analysts Have Made A Financial Statement On Rubis' (EPA:RUI) Yearly Report

Rubis (EPA:RUI) missed earnings with its latest full-year results, disappointing overly-optimistic forecasters. Rubis missed analyst forecasts, with revenues of €3.9b and statutory earnings per share (EPS) of €2.72, falling short by 4.5% and 3.7% respectively. 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. Readers will be glad to know we've aggregated the latest statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their mind on Rubis after the latest results.

View our latest analysis for Rubis

Following the latest results, Rubis' nine analysts are now forecasting revenues of €4.24b in 2021. This would be a notable 8.8% improvement in sales compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to soar 69% to €2.92. Before this earnings report, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of €4.44b and earnings per share (EPS) of €2.97 in 2021. The consensus seems maybe a little more pessimistic, trimming their revenue forecasts after the latest results even though there was no change to its EPS estimates.

The average price target was steady at €49.48even though revenue estimates declined; likely suggesting the analysts place a higher value on earnings. 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. The most optimistic Rubis analyst has a price target of €61.00 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at €40.00. Analysts definitely have varying views on the business, but the spread of estimates is not wide enough in our view to suggest that extreme outcomes could await Rubis shareholders.

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 Rubis' revenue growth is expected to slow, with the forecast 8.8% annualised growth rate until the end of 2021 being well below the historical 11% 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 2.6% annually. So it's pretty clear that, while Rubis' revenue growth is expected to slow, it's still expected to grow faster than the industry itself.

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. They also downgraded their revenue estimates, although industry data suggests that Rubis' revenues are expected to grow faster than the wider industry. With that said, earnings are more important to the long-term value of the business. 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.

With that in mind, we wouldn't be too quick to come to a conclusion on Rubis. Long-term earnings power is much more important than next year's profits. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Rubis going out to 2025, and you can see them free on our platform here..

Don't forget that there may still be risks. For instance, we've identified 3 warning signs for Rubis that you should be aware of.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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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