Rubis (EPA:RUI) Just Reported Half-Year Earnings: Have Analysts Changed Their Mind On The Stock?

It's been a mediocre week for Rubis (EPA:RUI) shareholders, with the stock dropping 13% to €25.30 in the week since its latest half-yearly results. It was a credible result overall, with revenues of €3.3b and statutory earnings per share of €3.42 both in line with analyst estimates, showing that Rubis is executing in line with expectations. Earnings are an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance, look at what the analysts are forecasting for next year, and see if there's been a change in sentiment towards the company. With this in mind, we've gathered the latest statutory forecasts to see what the analysts are expecting for next year.

View our latest analysis for Rubis

Following the latest results, Rubis' five analysts are now forecasting revenues of €6.83b in 2024. This would be a modest 2.8% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to grow 11% to €3.33. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of €6.90b and earnings per share (EPS) of €3.48 in 2024. 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.

The consensus price target held steady at €36.50, with the analysts seemingly voting that their lower forecast earnings are not expected to lead to a lower stock price in the foreseeable future. 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 Rubis, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at €53.00 and the most bearish at €26.00 per share. Note the wide gap in analyst price targets? This implies to us that there is a fairly broad range of possible scenarios for the underlying business.

One way to get more context on these forecasts is to look at how they compare to both past performance, and how other companies in the same industry are performing. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that Rubis' revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2024 expected to display 5.6% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 11% over the past five years. Juxtapose this against the other companies in the industry with analyst coverage, which are forecast to grow their revenues (in aggregate) 2.7% per year. Even after the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Rubis is also expected to grow faster 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. Happily, there were no major changes to revenue forecasts, with the business still expected to grow faster than the wider industry. The consensus price target held steady at €36.50, 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 Rubis analysts - going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

And what about risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Rubis you should know about.

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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.