Advertisement

These Analysts Just Made A Significant Downgrade To Their Immunocore Holdings plc (NASDAQ:IMCR) EPS Forecasts

Today is shaping up negative for Immunocore Holdings plc (NASDAQ:IMCR) shareholders, with the analysts delivering a substantial negative revision to this year's forecasts. Both revenue and earnings per share (EPS) forecasts went under the knife, suggesting analysts have soured majorly on the business.

After the downgrade, the five analysts covering Immunocore Holdings are now predicting revenues of UK£83m in 2022. If met, this would reflect a huge 105% improvement in sales compared to the last 12 months. The loss per share is anticipated to greatly reduce in the near future, narrowing 27% to UK£1.97. Yet prior to the latest estimates, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of UK£97m and losses of UK£1.75 per share in 2022. Ergo, there's been a clear change in sentiment, with the analysts administering a notable cut to this year's revenue estimates, while at the same time increasing their loss per share forecasts.

Check out our latest analysis for Immunocore Holdings

earnings-and-revenue-growth
earnings-and-revenue-growth

The consensus price target was broadly unchanged at UK£42.92, perhaps implicitly signalling that the weaker earnings outlook is not expected to have a long-term impact on the valuation. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. Currently, the most bullish analyst values Immunocore Holdings at UK£79.58 per share, while the most bearish prices it at UK£32.74. So we wouldn't be assigning too much credibility to analyst price targets in this case, because there are clearly some widely differing views on what kind of performance this business can generate. With this in mind, we wouldn't rely too heavily on the consensus price target, as it is just an average and analysts clearly have some deeply divergent views on the 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. It's clear from the latest estimates that Immunocore Holdings' rate of growth is expected to accelerate meaningfully, with the forecast 160% annualised revenue growth to the end of 2022 noticeably faster than its historical growth of 35% over the past year. Compare this with other companies in the same industry, which are forecast to grow their revenue 12% annually. It seems obvious that, while the growth outlook is brighter than the recent past, the analysts also expect Immunocore Holdings to grow faster than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to note from this downgrade is that the consensus increased its forecast losses this year, suggesting all may not be well at Immunocore Holdings. While analysts did downgrade their revenue estimates, these forecasts still imply revenues will perform better than the wider market. The lack of change in the price target is puzzling in light of the downgrade but, with a serious decline expected this year, we wouldn't be surprised if investors were a bit wary of Immunocore Holdings.

With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. We have estimates - from multiple Immunocore Holdings analysts - going out to 2024, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Another way to search for interesting companies that could be reaching an inflection point is to track whether management are buying or selling, with our free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.