It's been a good week for Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) shareholders, because the company has just released its latest quarterly results, and the shares gained 10.0% to US$595. The result was positive overall - although revenues of US$11b were in line with what the analysts predicted, Thermo Fisher Scientific surprised by delivering a statutory profit of US$4.04 per share, modestly greater than expected. This is an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance in its report, look at what experts are forecasting for next year, and see if there has been any change to expectations for the business. So we gathered the latest post-earnings forecasts to see what estimates suggest is in store for next year.

Taking into account the latest results, Thermo Fisher Scientific's 25 analysts currently expect revenues in 2024 to be US$43.0b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Statutory per share are forecast to be US$16.11, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of US$43.0b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$16.02 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.

There were no changes to revenue or earnings estimates or the price target of US$632, suggesting that the company has met expectations in its recent result. The consensus price target is just an average of individual analyst targets, so - it could be handy to see how wide the range of underlying estimates is. There are some variant perceptions on Thermo Fisher Scientific, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at US$677 and the most bearish at US$565 per share. Still, with such a tight range of estimates, it suggeststhe analysts have a pretty good idea of what they think the company is worth.

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. We would highlight that Thermo Fisher Scientific's revenue growth is expected to slow, with the forecast 2.9% annualised growth rate until the end of 2024 being well below the historical 12% p.a. growth over the last five years. By way of comparison, the other companies in this industry with analyst coverage are forecast to grow their revenue at 6.6% per year. Factoring in the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Thermo Fisher Scientific is also expected to grow slower than other industry participants.

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. Fortunately, the analysts also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Although our data does suggest that Thermo Fisher Scientific's revenue is expected to perform worse than the wider industry. The consensus price target held steady at US$632, with the latest estimates not enough to have an impact on their price targets.

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. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Thermo Fisher Scientific going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here..

However, before you get too enthused, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Thermo Fisher Scientific that you should be aware 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.

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