• In February 2026, Bright Horizons Family Solutions reported fourth-quarter 2025 revenue of US$733.7 million and full-year revenue of US$2.93 billion, alongside full-year diluted EPS from continuing operations of US$3.36.
• While the company’s latest quarter and year showed higher sales and earnings, its new 2026 revenue guidance of US$3.08–3.13 billion came in below market expectations, highlighting a tension between recent execution and management’s more cautious outlook.
• Next, we’ll examine how this strong 2025 finish but softer-than-expected 2026 guidance affects Bright Horizons’ prior investment narrative.

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Bright Horizons Family Solutions Investment Narrative Recap

To own Bright Horizons, you need to believe that employer-sponsored child care and back-up care can keep gaining traction, even as the core center portfolio is reshaped. Right now, the key short term catalyst is whether management can grow back-up care and improve center economics fast enough to offset planned closures, while the biggest risk is that softer 2026 guidance signals slower demand that keeps occupancy and margin improvement under pressure.

The most relevant recent announcement is management’s 2026 revenue outlook of US$3.08–3.13 billion, which fell short of market expectations. This matters because it directly challenges the prior catalyst of steady mid single digit growth underpinning margin recovery, and forces investors to weigh strong 2025 execution against a more cautious view of how quickly enrollment and back-up care usage can translate into higher earnings.

But this softer guide also brings a sharper focus on lingering center underperformance that investors should be aware of, especially where occupancy...

Bright Horizons Family Solutions' narrative projects $3.5 billion revenue and $329.7 million earnings by 2028. This requires 7.5% yearly revenue growth and about a $152.8 million earnings increase from $176.9 million today.

Uncover how Bright Horizons Family Solutions' forecasts yield a $127.33 fair value, a 90% upside to its current price.

Exploring Other Perspectives

Before this update, the most optimistic analysts were projecting revenue of about US$3.6 billion and earnings near US$359 million, a far stronger outcome than today’s guidance, so if you are weighing that upbeat view against the risk that heavy reliance on back-up care growth could eventually cool, it is worth recognizing that opinions differ widely and both narratives may need to be revisited in light of the new numbers.

Explore 4 other fair value estimates on Bright Horizons Family Solutions - why the stock might be worth over 2x more than the current price!

Build Your Own Bright Horizons Family Solutions Narrative

Disagree with existing narratives? Create your own in under 3 minutes - extraordinary investment returns rarely come from following the herd.

• A great starting point for your Bright Horizons Family Solutions research is our analysis highlighting 3 key rewards and 1 important warning sign that could impact your investment decision.
• Our free Bright Horizons Family Solutions research report provides a comprehensive fundamental analysis summarized in a single visual - the Snowflake - making it easy to evaluate Bright Horizons Family Solutions' overall financial health at a glance.

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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.