Shareholders might have noticed that Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP) filed its quarterly result this time last week. The early response was not positive, with shares down 4.2% to US$34.95 in the past week. Results look mixed - while revenue fell marginally short of analyst estimates at US$563m, statutory earnings were in line with expectations, at US$4.14 per share. 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. We thought readers would find it interesting to see the analysts latest (statutory) post-earnings forecasts for next year.

View our latest analysis for Koppers Holdings

Taking into account the latest results, Koppers Holdings' twin analysts currently expect revenues in 2024 to be US$2.15b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Statutory per share are forecast to be US$3.87, approximately in line with the last 12 months. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$2.24b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$4.54 in 2024. The analysts seem less optimistic after the recent results, reducing their revenue forecasts and making a substantial drop in earnings per share numbers.

What's most unexpected is that the consensus price target rose 13% to US$64.50, strongly implying the downgrade to forecasts is not expected to be more than a temporary blip.

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. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that Koppers Holdings' revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2024 expected to display 2.7% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 6.4% over the past five years. Compare this against other companies (with analyst forecasts) in the industry, which are in aggregate expected to see revenue growth of 4.8% annually. So it's pretty clear that, while revenue growth is expected to slow down, the wider industry is also expected to grow faster than Koppers Holdings.

The Bottom Line

The biggest concern is that the analysts reduced their earnings per share estimates, suggesting business headwinds could lay ahead for Koppers Holdings. On the negative side, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and 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.