Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) investors will be delighted, with the company turning in some strong numbers with its latest results. It was overall a positive result, with revenues beating expectations by 3.7% to hit US$4.4b. Booking Holdings also reported a statutory profit of US$22.37, which was an impressive 77% above what the analysts had forecast. 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. With this in mind, we've gathered the latest statutory forecasts to see what the analysts are expecting for next year.

See our latest analysis for Booking Holdings

Taking into account the latest results, the consensus forecast from Booking Holdings' 32 analysts is for revenues of US$23.2b in 2024. This reflects a modest 5.2% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to jump 26% to US$177. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$23.1b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$169 in 2024. The analysts seems to have become more bullish on the business, judging by their new earnings per share estimates.

The consensus price target was unchanged at US$4,032, implying that the improved earnings outlook is not expected to have a long term impact on value creation for shareholders. 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. The most optimistic Booking Holdings analyst has a price target of US$4,500 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$3,494. Even so, with a relatively close grouping of estimates, it looks like the analysts are quite confident in their valuations, suggesting Booking Holdings is an easy business to forecast or the the analysts are all using similar assumptions.

These estimates are interesting, but it can be useful to paint some more broad strokes when seeing how forecasts compare, both to the Booking Holdings' past performance and to peers in the same industry. We would highlight that Booking Holdings' revenue growth is expected to slow, with the forecast 7.1% 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 9.7% per year. Factoring in the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Booking Holdings is also expected to grow slower than other industry participants.

The Bottom Line

The biggest takeaway for us is the consensus earnings per share upgrade, which suggests a clear improvement in sentiment around Booking Holdings' earnings potential next year. Fortunately, the analysts also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Although our data does suggest that Booking Holdings' revenue is expected to perform worse than the wider industry. 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.

With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. We have estimates - from multiple Booking Holdings analysts - going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

However, before you get too enthused, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Booking Holdings 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.