Results: PJT Partners Inc. Exceeded Expectations And The Consensus Has Updated Its Estimates

PJT Partners Inc. (NYSE:PJT) just released its latest third-quarter results and things are looking bullish. It was overall a positive result, with revenues beating expectations by 4.1% to hit US$326m. PJT Partners also reported a statutory profit of US$0.79, which was an impressive 25% above what the analysts had forecast. 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. So we collected the latest post-earnings statutory consensus estimates to see what could be in store for next year.

Check out our latest analysis for PJT Partners

Taking into account the latest results, the consensus forecast from PJT Partners' six analysts is for revenues of US$1.58b in 2025. This reflects a meaningful 17% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are expected to drop 17% to US$3.76 in the same period. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$1.55b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$3.86 in 2025. So it's pretty clear consensus is mixed on PJT Partners after the latest results; whilethe analysts lifted revenue numbers, they also administered a small dip in per-share earnings expectations.

The consensus price target was unchanged at US$135, suggesting the business is performing roughly in line with expectations, despite some adjustments to profit and revenue forecasts. Fixating on a single price target can be unwise though, since the consensus target is effectively the average of analyst price targets. As a result, some investors like to look at the range of estimates to see if there are any diverging opinions on the company's valuation. The most optimistic PJT Partners analyst has a price target of US$151 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$109. There are definitely some different views on the stock, but the range of estimates is not wide enough as to imply that the situation is unforecastable, in our view.

Taking a look at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can understand these forecasts is to see how they compare to both past performance and industry growth estimates. It's clear from the latest estimates that PJT Partners' rate of growth is expected to accelerate meaningfully, with the forecast 13% annualised revenue growth to the end of 2025 noticeably faster than its historical growth of 9.6% p.a. over the past five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in a similar industry are forecast to grow their revenue at 6.0% per year. Factoring in the forecast acceleration in revenue, it's pretty clear that PJT Partners is expected to grow much faster than its industry.

The Bottom Line

The biggest concern is that the analysts reduced their earnings per share estimates, suggesting business headwinds could lay ahead for PJT Partners. Happily, they also upgraded their revenue estimates, and are forecasting them to grow faster than the wider industry. The consensus price target held steady at US$135, with the latest estimates not enough to have an impact on their price targets.

Following on from that line of thought, we think that the long-term prospects of the business are much more relevant than next year's earnings. We have forecasts for PJT Partners going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Even so, be aware that PJT Partners is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , 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.