Earnings Update: Here's Why Analysts Just Lifted Their SES S.A. (BDL:SESGL) Price Target To €5.40

Shareholders might have noticed that SES S.A. (BDL:SESGL) filed its half-year result this time last week. The early response was not positive, with shares down 2.6% to €6.12 in the past week. Results were overall in line with expectations, with the company breaking even at the statutory earnings per share (EPS) level on €978m in revenue. 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 collected the latest post-earnings statutory consensus estimates to see what could be in store for next year.

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Taking into account the latest results, the current consensus, from the eight analysts covering SES, is for revenues of €1.99b in 2025. This implies a measurable 3.1% reduction in SES' revenue over the past 12 months. SES is also expected to turn profitable, with statutory earnings of €0.15 per share. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of €1.98b and earnings per share (EPS) of €0.12 in 2025. Although the revenue estimates have not really changed, we can see there's been a considerable lift to earnings per share expectations, suggesting that the analysts have become more bullish after the latest result.

View our latest analysis for SES

The consensus price target rose 8.0% to €5.40, suggesting that higher earnings estimates flow through to the stock's valuation as well.

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 revenue is expected to reverse, with a forecast 6.0% annualised decline to the end of 2025. That is a notable change from historical growth of 2.3% over the last five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the same industry are forecast to see their revenue grow 1.5% annually for the foreseeable future. So although its revenues are forecast to shrink, this cloud does not come with a silver lining - SES is expected to lag the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The biggest takeaway for us is the consensus earnings per share upgrade, which suggests a clear improvement in sentiment around SES' earnings potential next year. On the plus side, there were no major changes to revenue estimates; although forecasts imply they will perform worse than the wider industry. We note an upgrade to the price target, suggesting that the analysts believes the intrinsic value of the business is likely to improve over time.

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

Don't forget that there may still be risks. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for SES 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.