Here's What Analysts Are Forecasting For WH Group Limited (HKG:288) After Its Half-Year Results
Last week, you might have seen that WH Group Limited (HKG:288) released its interim result to the market. The early response was not positive, with shares down 9.5% to HK$7.42 in the past week. It was an okay result overall, with revenues coming in at US$14b, roughly what the analysts had been expecting. The analysts typically update their forecasts at each earnings report, and we can judge from their estimates whether their view of the company has changed or if there are any new concerns to be aware of. So we collected the latest post-earnings statutory consensus estimates to see what could be in store for next year.
Following last week's earnings report, WH Group's 15 analysts are forecasting 2026 revenues to be US$28.3b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to accumulate 3.4% to US$0.12. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$28.9b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$0.13 in 2026. The consensus seems maybe a little more pessimistic, trimming their revenue forecasts after the latest results even though there was no change to its EPS estimates.
See our latest analysis for WH Group
The consensus has reconfirmed its price target of HK$10.05, showing that the analysts don't expect weaker revenue expectations next year to have a material impact on WH Group's market value. That's not the only conclusion we can draw from this data however, as some investors also like to consider the spread in estimates when evaluating analyst price targets. The most optimistic WH Group analyst has a price target of HK$11.76 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at HK$6.20. So we wouldn't be assigning too much credibility to analyst price targets in this case, because there are clearly some widely different views on what kind of performance this business can generate. With this in mind, we wouldn't rely too heavily the consensus price target, as it is just an average and analysts clearly have some deeply divergent views on the business.
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. These estimates imply that revenue is expected to slow, with a forecast annualised decline of 1.2% by the end of 2026. This indicates a significant reduction from annual growth of 0.2% over the last five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the same industry are forecast to see their revenue grow 5.0% annually for the foreseeable future. So although its revenues are forecast to shrink, this cloud does not come with a silver lining - WH Group is expected to lag the wider industry.
The Bottom Line
The most obvious conclusion is that there's been no major change in the business' prospects in recent times, with the analysts holding their earnings forecasts steady, in line with previous estimates. Unfortunately, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and our data indicates underperformance compared to the wider industry. Even so, earnings per share are more important to the intrinsic value of the business. With that said, earnings are more important to the long-term value of the business. 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.
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 WH Group going out to 2028, and you can see them free on our platform here.
And what about risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for WH Group 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.