Shareholders of BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ) will be pleased this week, given that the stock price is up 14% to US$116 following its latest annual results. Results were roughly in line with estimates, with revenues of US$21b and statutory earnings per share of US$4.00. Following the result, the analysts have updated their earnings model, and it would be good to know whether they think there's been a strong change in the company's prospects, or if it's business as usual. With this in mind, we've gathered the latest statutory forecasts to see what the analysts are expecting for next year.

View our latest analysis for BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings

After the latest results, the 19 analysts covering BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings are now predicting revenues of US$21.7b in 2026. If met, this would reflect a credible 5.7% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to increase 5.2% to US$4.26. Before this earnings report, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$21.8b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$4.28 in 2026. The consensus analysts don't seem to have seen anything in these results that would have changed their view on the business, given there's been no major change to their estimates.

With the analysts reconfirming their revenue and earnings forecasts, it's surprising to see that the price target rose 14% to US$114. It looks as though they previously had some doubts over whether the business would live up to their expectations. That's not the only conclusion we can draw from this data however, as some investors also like to consider the spread in estimates when evaluating analyst price targets. The most optimistic BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings analyst has a price target of US$135 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$63.34. Note the wide gap in analyst price targets? This implies to us that there is a fairly broad range of possible scenarios for the underlying business.

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. We would highlight that BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings' revenue growth is expected to slow, with the forecast 5.7% annualised growth rate until the end of 2026 being well below the historical 8.7% p.a. growth over the last five years. Compare this to the 64 other companies in this industry with analyst coverage, which are forecast to grow their revenue at 4.7% per year. Factoring in the forecast slowdown in growth, it looks like BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings is forecast to grow at about the same rate as the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that there's been no major change in sentiment, with the analysts reconfirming that the business is performing in line with their previous earnings per share estimates. They also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, with the company predicted to grow at about the same rate as the wider industry. There was also a nice increase in the price target, with the analysts clearly feeling that the intrinsic value of the business is improving.

With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. We have forecasts for BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings going out to 2028, and you can see them free on our platform here.

It might also be worth considering whether BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings' debt load is appropriate, using our debt analysis tools on the Simply Wall St platform, here.

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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.