The third-quarter results for Knife River Corporation (NYSE:KNF) were released last week, making it a good time to revisit its performance. It looks like the results were a bit of a negative overall. While revenues of US$1.1b were in line with analyst predictions, statutory earnings were less than expected, missing estimates by 6.9% to hit US$2.60 per share. 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.

View our latest analysis for Knife River

Taking into account the latest results, the consensus forecast from Knife River's eight analysts is for revenues of US$3.05b in 2025. This reflects a satisfactory 5.5% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to step up 18% to US$4.14. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of US$3.05b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$4.27 in 2025. So it looks like there's been a small decline in overall sentiment after the recent results - there's been no major change to revenue estimates, but the analysts did make a small dip in their earnings per share forecasts.

Althoughthe analysts have revised their earnings forecasts for next year, they've also lifted the consensus price target 6.0% to US$110, suggesting the revised estimates are not indicative of a weaker long-term future for the business. The consensus price target is just an average of individual analyst targets, so - it could be handy to see how wide the range of underlying estimates is. Currently, the most bullish analyst values Knife River at US$125 per share, while the most bearish prices it at US$98.50. With such a narrow range of valuations, the analysts apparently share similar views on what they think the business is worth.

Looking at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can make sense of these forecasts is to see how they measure up against both past performance and industry growth estimates. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that Knife River's revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2025 expected to display 4.4% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 9.5% over the past three years. By way of comparison, the other companies in this industry with analyst coverage are forecast to grow their revenue at 6.4% per year. Factoring in the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Knife River is also expected to grow slower than other industry participants.

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. Fortunately, the analysts also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Although our data does suggest that Knife River's revenue is expected to perform worse than 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.

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 estimates - from multiple Knife River analysts - going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

You can also view our analysis of Knife River's balance sheet, and whether we think Knife River is carrying too much debt, for free on our 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.