Last week, you might have seen that Computacenter plc (LON:CCC) released its interim result to the market. The early response was not positive, with shares down 9.9% to UK£23.96 in the past week. Computacenter missed revenue estimates by 2.3%, coming in atUK£3.1b, although statutory earnings per share (EPS) of UK£0.53 beat expectations, coming in 4.1% ahead of analyst estimates. 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. Readers will be glad to know we've aggregated the latest statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their mind on Computacenter after the latest results.

View our latest analysis for Computacenter

Taking into account the latest results, the most recent consensus for Computacenter from nine analysts is for revenues of UK£6.64b in 2024. If met, it would imply a modest 3.0% increase on its revenue over the past 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to step up 10% to UK£1.70. Before this earnings report, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of UK£6.59b and earnings per share (EPS) of UK£1.69 in 2024. So it's pretty clear that, although the analysts have updated their estimates, there's been no major change in expectations for the business following the latest results.

It will come as no surprise then, to learn that the consensus price target is largely unchanged at UK£31.53. There's another way to think about price targets though, and that's to look at the range of price targets put forward by analysts, because a wide range of estimates could suggest a diverse view on possible outcomes for the business. Currently, the most bullish analyst values Computacenter at UK£36.00 per share, while the most bearish prices it at UK£25.00. 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.

These estimates are interesting, but it can be useful to paint some more broad strokes when seeing how forecasts compare, both to the Computacenter's past performance and to peers in the same industry. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that Computacenter's revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2024 expected to display 6.1% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 8.0% 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 8.0% annually. Factoring in the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Computacenter is also expected to grow slower than other industry participants.

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. Fortunately, the analysts also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Although our data does suggest that Computacenter's revenue is expected to perform worse than the wider industry. The consensus price target held steady at UK£31.53, with the latest estimates not enough to have an impact on their price targets.

With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Computacenter going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here..

We don't want to rain on the parade too much, but we did also find 2 warning signs for Computacenter that you need to be mindful of.

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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.