Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (NYSE:EW) Released Earnings Last Week And Analysts Lifted Their Price Target To US$90.47

Shareholders of Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (NYSE:EW) will be pleased this week, given that the stock price is up 10% to US$86.61 following its latest annual results. Results were roughly in line with estimates, with revenues of US$6.0b and statutory earnings per share of US$2.30. Following the result, the analysts have updated their earnings model, and it would be good to know whether they think there's been a strong change in the company's prospects, or if it's business as usual. So we gathered the latest post-earnings forecasts to see what estimates suggest is in store for next year.

Check out our latest analysis for Edwards Lifesciences

Following the latest results, Edwards Lifesciences' 29 analysts are now forecasting revenues of US$6.51b in 2024. This would be a solid 8.5% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to swell 17% to US$2.70. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$6.47b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$2.73 in 2024. The consensus analysts don't seem to have seen anything in these results that would have changed their view on the business, given there's been no major change to their estimates.

The consensus price target rose 13% to US$90.47despite there being no meaningful change to earnings estimates. It could be that the analystsare reflecting the predictability of Edwards Lifesciences' earnings by assigning a price premium. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. The most optimistic Edwards Lifesciences analyst has a price target of US$105 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$67.00. These price targets show that analysts do have some differing views on the business, but the estimates do not vary enough to suggest to us that some are betting on wild success or utter failure.

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. The period to the end of 2024 brings more of the same, according to the analysts, with revenue forecast to display 8.5% growth on an annualised basis. That is in line with its 9.0% annual growth over the past five years. Juxtapose this against our data, which suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the industry are forecast to see their revenues grow 7.9% per year. So although Edwards Lifesciences is expected to maintain its revenue growth rate, it's only growing at about the rate of the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that there's been no major change in sentiment, with the analysts reconfirming that the business is performing in line with their previous earnings per share estimates. They also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, with the company predicted to grow at about the same rate as 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.

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 estimates - from multiple Edwards Lifesciences analysts - going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Another thing to consider is whether management and directors have been buying or selling stock recently. We provide an overview of all open market stock trades for the last twelve months on our platform, here.

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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.