Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (NASDAQ:GLDD) defied analyst predictions to release its first-quarter results, which were ahead of market expectations. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock delivered a significant beat to revenue and earnings per share (EPS) expectations, hitting US$199m-13% above indicated-andUS$0.31-343% above forecasts- respectively 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. With this in mind, we've gathered the latest statutory forecasts to see what the analysts are expecting for next year.

Taking into account the latest results, the most recent consensus for Great Lakes Dredge & Dock from three analysts is for revenues of US$754.3m in 2024. If met, it would imply a meaningful 20% increase on its revenue over the past 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to leap 34% to US$0.77. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$733.2m and earnings per share (EPS) of US$0.63 in 2024. There's been a pretty noticeable increase in sentiment, with the analysts upgrading revenues and making a considerable lift to earnings per share in particular.

With these upgrades, we're not surprised to see that the analysts have lifted their price target 5.6% to US$12.67per share. 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. The most optimistic Great Lakes Dredge & Dock analyst has a price target of US$14.00 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$11.00. 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.

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. One thing stands out from these estimates, which is that Great Lakes Dredge & Dock is forecast to grow faster in the future than it has in the past, with revenues expected to display 27% annualised growth until the end of 2024. If achieved, this would be a much better result than the 3.8% annual decline over the past five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the industry are forecast to see their revenue grow 7.8% per year. Not only are Great Lakes Dredge & Dock's revenues expected to improve, it seems that the analysts are also expecting it to grow faster than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The biggest takeaway for us is the consensus earnings per share upgrade, which suggests a clear improvement in sentiment around Great Lakes Dredge & Dock's earnings potential next year. Happily, they also upgraded their revenue estimates, and are forecasting them to grow faster 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.

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 Great Lakes Dredge & Dock going out to 2025, and you can see them free on our platform here..

And what about risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Great Lakes Dredge & Dock you should know about.

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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.