Valuation
Analyst Forecast
An analyst forecast is a published estimate of future earnings or a price target from a sell-side analyst.
Price targets are opinions with a number attached. The useful part is the cluster: a consensus built from many analysts, the high and the low, and whether estimates of earnings are rising or falling. A target 40% above the price is not a promised return. It is the gap between today's quote and a set of models that may share the same optimistic input.
Stocklytics shows the consensus target and the estimate path on the stock page, and a dedicated forecast page per ticker that puts the live price, the trailing P/E, and the forward P/E in one place. Weight revisions more than the level. Analysts are slow to abandon a target, and targets often follow the price. Rising earnings estimates with a flat price is a more interesting combination than a high target on falling estimates.
Formula
Implied upside = (consensus price target − current price) ÷ current price
Live example
Apple Inc. (AAPL) last printed at $345.33 with a market cap of $5.04T. Neither trailing nor forward P/E is on this quote, which usually means earnings are absent or negative.
Related
Forward P/E · Earnings Per Share (EPS) · Discounted Cash Flow (DCF)
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Questions
Should I buy because the target is higher?
No. Ask what earnings the target assumes, and whether you believe those earnings at this price.
What is estimate revision momentum?
The direction of changes in consensus EPS. Upward revisions have historically mattered more than the static target price.