As you might know, George Weston Limited (TSE:WN) recently reported its quarterly numbers. George Weston reported in line with analyst predictions, delivering revenues of CA$14b and statutory earnings per share of CA$9.80, suggesting the business is executing well and in line with its plan. 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've gathered the most recent statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their earnings models, following these results.

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Taking into account the latest results, the consensus forecast from George Weston's six analysts is for revenues of CA$65.4b in 2025. This reflects a modest 5.2% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to expand 13% to CA$10.16. Before this earnings report, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of CA$65.3b and earnings per share (EPS) of CA$12.23 in 2025. The analysts seem to have become more bearish following the latest results. While there were no changes to revenue forecasts, there was a substantial drop in EPS estimates.

See our latest analysis for George Weston

Despite cutting their earnings forecasts,the analysts have lifted their price target 11% to CA$275, suggesting that these impacts are not expected to weigh on the stock's value in the long term. 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. The most optimistic George Weston analyst has a price target of CA$308 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at CA$200. This shows there is still a bit of diversity in estimates, but analysts don't appear to be totally split on the stock as though it might be a success or failure situation.

Looking at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can make sense of these forecasts is to see how they measure up against both past performance and industry growth estimates. It's clear from the latest estimates that George Weston's rate of growth is expected to accelerate meaningfully, with the forecast 7.0% annualised revenue growth to the end of 2025 noticeably faster than its historical growth of 4.2% p.a. over the past five years. Compare this with other companies in the same industry, which are forecast to grow their revenue 2.8% annually. Factoring in the forecast acceleration in revenue, it's pretty clear that George Weston is expected to grow much faster than its industry.

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The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that the analysts downgraded their earnings per share estimates, showing that there has been a clear decline in sentiment following these results. Fortunately, they also reconfirmed their revenue numbers, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Additionally, our data suggests that revenue is expected to grow faster 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.

Keeping that in mind, we still think that the longer term trajectory of the business is much more important for investors to consider. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for George Weston going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here..

Before you take the next step you should know about the 1 warning sign for George Weston that we have uncovered.

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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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