Conduent Incorporated (NASDAQ:CNDT) missed earnings with its latest second-quarter results, disappointing overly-optimistic forecasters. It was a pretty negative result overall, with revenues of US$664m missing analyst predictions by 4.9%. Worse, the business reported a statutory loss of US$0.76 per share, much larger than the analysts had forecast prior to the result. 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. With this in mind, we've gathered the latest statutory forecasts to see what the analysts are expecting for next year.

Following the recent earnings report, the consensus from dual analysts covering Conduent is for revenues of US$2.34b in 2026. This implies a disturbing 21% decline in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Losses are expected to increase substantially, hitting US$1.30 per share. Before this earnings announcement, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$2.75b and losses of US$0.72 per share in 2026. There's been a definite change in sentiment in this update, with the analysts administering a notable cut to next year's revenue estimates, while at the same time increasing their loss per share forecasts.

The average price target fell 9.1% to US$5.00, implicitly signalling that lower earnings per share are a leading indicator for Conduent's valuation.

One way to get more context on these forecasts is to look at how they compare to both past performance, and how other companies in the same industry are performing. Over the past five years, revenues have declined around 7.9% annually. Worse, forecasts are essentially predicting the decline to accelerate, with the estimate for an annualised 37% decline in revenue until the end of 2026. Compare this against analyst estimates for companies in the broader industry, which suggest that revenues (in aggregate) are expected to grow 6.2% annually. So it's pretty clear that, while it does have declining revenues, the analysts also expect Conduent to suffer worse than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that the analysts increased their loss per share estimates for next year. On the negative side, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and forecasts imply they will perform worse than the wider industry. The consensus price target fell measurably, with the analysts seemingly not reassured by the latest results, leading to a lower estimate of Conduent's future valuation.

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 analyst estimates for Conduent going out as far as 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here.

You should always think about risks though.

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.