AtriCure, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRC) Just Released Its Third-Quarter Results And Analysts Are Updating Their Estimates

AtriCure, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRC) defied analyst predictions to release its quarterly results, which were ahead of market expectations. Results overall were solid, with revenues arriving 2.3% better than analyst forecasts at US$134m. Higher revenues also resulted in substantially lower statutory losses which, at US$0.01 per share, were 2.3% smaller than the analysts expected. 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 gathered the latest post-earnings forecasts to see what estimates suggest is in store for next year.

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Taking into account the latest results, the current consensus from AtriCure's nine analysts is for revenues of US$598.8m in 2026. This would reflect a decent 16% increase on its revenue over the past 12 months. Losses are predicted to fall substantially, shrinking 70% to US$0.18. Before this latest report, the consensus had been expecting revenues of US$596.3m and US$0.22 per share in losses. While the revenue estimates were largely unchanged, sentiment seems to have improved, with the analysts upgrading their numbers and making a favorable reduction in losses per share in particular.

Check out our latest analysis for AtriCure

There's been no major changes to the consensus price target of US$51.44, suggesting that reduced loss estimates are not enough to have a long-term positive impact on the stock's valuation. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. There are some variant perceptions on AtriCure, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at US$64.00 and the most bearish at US$40.00 per share. 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 AtriCure shareholders.

These estimates are interesting, but it can be useful to paint some more broad strokes when seeing how forecasts compare, both to the AtriCure's past performance and to peers in the same industry. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that AtriCure's revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2026 expected to display 12% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 18% 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) 8.4% per year. So it's pretty clear that, while AtriCure's revenue growth is expected to slow, it's still expected to grow faster than the industry itself.

The Bottom Line

The most obvious conclusion is that the analysts made no changes to their forecasts for a loss next year. Fortunately, they also reconfirmed their revenue numbers, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Additionally, our data suggests that revenue is expected to grow faster than the wider industry. 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 AtriCure. Long-term earnings power is much more important than next year's profits. We have estimates - from multiple AtriCure analysts - going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Even so, be aware that AtriCure is showing 1 warning sign 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.