It's been a good week for Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC) shareholders, because the company has just released its latest yearly results, and the shares gained 6.3% to US$150. The result was positive overall - although revenues of US$2.7b were in line with what the analysts predicted, Belden surprised by delivering a statutory profit of US$5.91 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 collected the latest post-earnings statutory consensus estimates to see what could be in store for next year.

After the latest results, the five analysts covering Belden are now predicting revenues of US$2.93b in 2026. If met, this would reflect a credible 7.8% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Statutory per share are forecast to be US$5.99, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of US$2.84b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$6.18 in 2026. So it's pretty clear consensus is mixed on Belden after the latest results; whilethe analysts lifted revenue numbers, they also administered a minor downgrade to per-share earnings expectations.

The analysts also upgraded Belden's price target 17% to US$169, implying that the higher revenue expected to generate enough value to offset the forecast decline in earnings. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. The most optimistic Belden analyst has a price target of US$184 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$138. The narrow spread of estimates could suggest that the business' future is relatively easy to value, or thatthe analysts have a strong view on its prospects.

These estimates are interesting, but it can be useful to paint some more broad strokes when seeing how forecasts compare, both to the Belden's past performance and to peers in the same industry. The analysts are definitely expecting Belden's growth to accelerate, with the forecast 7.8% annualised growth to the end of 2026 ranking favourably alongside historical growth of 4.9% per annum over the past five years. Compare this with other companies in the same industry, which are forecast to see revenue growth of 11% annually. It seems obvious that, while the future growth outlook is brighter than the recent past, Belden is expected to grow slower than the wider industry.

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. They also upgraded their revenue estimates for next year, even though it is expected to grow slower 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.

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 Belden going out to 2028, and you can see them free on our platform here..

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.