What an estimate revision is
Between earnings reports, the analysts who cover a company continually update their forecasts as new information arrives — guidance, channel checks, macro data, peer results. An estimate revision is any change to the consensus EPS or revenue estimate for an upcoming period. Tracking how that consensus moves over time is often more informative than its level at a single moment.
Revision momentum
Revision momentum measures the direction and speed of those changes. When most analysts are raising their numbers, the estimate is said to have positive (upward) momentum; when they are cutting, momentum is negative. Persistent upward revisions historically tend to cluster — one analyst raising often precedes others — which is why momentum is treated as a signal rather than noise.
How to read a revision trend
A revision trend compares today's consensus to where it stood 30, 60 and 90 days ago. A rising line means the Street has grown more optimistic into the print; a falling line means the bar is being lowered. We need at least two captured snapshots before a trend can be shown — until then a name reads as “collecting data.”
Related tools
Learn where the consensus estimate comes from in the Earnings Season course lesson on how the consensus estimate is set.
See which names are being revised fastest on the revision momentum board, or compare the crowd to Wall Street with Smart Consensus.