Shareholders might have noticed that Unitil Corporation (NYSE:UTL) filed its quarterly result this time last week. The early response was not positive, with shares down 5.4% to US$49.28 in the past week. Revenue of US$217m came in a notable 22% ahead of expectations, while statutory earnings of US$1.85 were in line with what the analysts had been forecasting. 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. We thought readers would find it interesting to see the analysts latest (statutory) post-earnings forecasts for next year.

After the latest results, the dual analysts covering Unitil are now predicting revenues of US$610.4m in 2026. If met, this would reflect a modest 4.9% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to accumulate 5.8% to US$3.27. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of US$559.4m and earnings per share (EPS) of US$3.29 in 2026. There doesn't appear to have been a major change in sentiment following the results, other than the small increase to revenue estimates.

Even though revenue forecasts increased, there was no change to the consensus price target of US$55.50, suggesting the analysts are focused on earnings as the driver of value creation.

Taking a look at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can understand these forecasts is to see how they compare to both past performance and industry growth estimates. The analysts are definitely expecting Unitil's growth to accelerate, with the forecast 6.5% annualised growth to the end of 2026 ranking favourably alongside historical growth of 2.0% per annum over the past five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in a similar industry are forecast to grow their revenue at 4.0% per year. Factoring in the forecast acceleration in revenue, it's pretty clear that Unitil is expected to grow much faster than its industry.

The Bottom Line

The most obvious conclusion is that there's been no major change in the business' prospects in recent times, with the analysts holding their earnings forecasts steady, in line with previous estimates. Happily, they also upgraded their revenue estimates, and are forecasting them to grow faster than the wider industry. The consensus price target held steady at US$55.50, with the latest estimates not enough to have an impact on their price targets.

With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. We have analyst estimates for Unitil going out as far as 2028, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Don't forget that there may still be risks.

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.