Hunter Group ASA (OB:HUNT) Analysts Are Reducing Their Forecasts For This Year

The latest analyst coverage could presage a bad day for Hunter Group ASA (OB:HUNT), with the analysts making across-the-board cuts to their statutory estimates that might leave shareholders a little shell-shocked. Both revenue and earnings per share (EPS) forecasts went under the knife, suggesting analysts have soured majorly on the business.

After the downgrade, the consensus from Hunter Group's three analysts is for revenues of US$30m in 2022, which would reflect a chunky 11% decline in sales compared to the last year of performance. Per-share earnings are expected to shoot up 538% to US$0.0056. Prior to this update, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$40m and earnings per share (EPS) of US$0.0095 in 2022. Indeed, we can see that the analysts are a lot more bearish about Hunter Group's prospects, administering a pretty serious reduction to revenue estimates and slashing their EPS estimates to boot.

See our latest analysis for Hunter Group

Another way we can view these estimates is in the context of the bigger picture, such as how the forecasts stack up against past performance, and whether forecasts are more or less bullish relative to other companies in the industry. These estimates imply that sales are expected to slow, with a forecast annualised revenue decline of 14% by the end of 2022. This indicates a significant reduction from annual growth of 61% over the last five years. Yet aggregate analyst estimates for other companies in the industry suggest that industry revenues are forecast to decline 13% per year.

The Bottom Line

The biggest issue in the new estimates is that analysts have reduced their earnings per share estimates, suggesting business headwinds lay ahead for Hunter Group. Unfortunately analysts also downgraded their revenue estimates, although the forecast result is still roughly in line with that of the wider market. Given the serious cut to this year's outlook, it's clear that analysts have turned more bearish on Hunter Group, and we wouldn't blame shareholders for feeling a little more cautious themselves.

That said, the analysts might have good reason to be negative on Hunter Group, given its declining profit margins. For more information, you can click here to discover this and the 3 other concerns we've identified.

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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.