Market forces rained on the parade of Xencor, Inc. (NASDAQ:XNCR) shareholders today, when the analysts downgraded their forecasts for next year.   Both revenue and earnings per share (EPS) estimates were cut sharply as the analysts factored in the latest outlook for the business, concluding that they were too optimistic previously.  

Following the downgrade, the consensus from 13 analysts covering Xencor is for revenues of US$92m in 2024, implying a substantial 37% decline in sales compared to the last 12 months.      Losses are supposed to balloon 84% to US$3.60 per share.       However, before this estimates update, the consensus had been expecting revenues of US$169m and US$2.75 per share in losses.         So there's been quite a change-up of views after the recent consensus updates, with the analysts making a serious cut to their revenue forecasts while also expecting losses per share to increase.    

View our latest analysis for Xencor

NasdaqGM:XNCR Earnings and Revenue Growth November 13th 2023

The consensus price target fell 8.9% to US$39.71, implicitly signalling that lower earnings per share are a leading indicator for Xencor's valuation.    

Another way we can view these estimates is in the context of the bigger picture, such as how the forecasts stack up against past performance, and whether forecasts are more or less bullish relative to other companies in the industry.     These estimates imply that sales are expected to slow, with a forecast annualised revenue decline of 31% by the end of 2024. This indicates a significant reduction from annual growth of 14% over the last five years.    By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the same industry are forecast to see their revenue grow 15% annually for the foreseeable future.  So although its revenues are forecast to shrink, this cloud does not come with a silver lining - Xencor is expected to lag the wider industry.    

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that analysts increased their loss per share estimates for next year.        Unfortunately analysts also downgraded their revenue estimates, and industry data suggests that Xencor's revenues are expected to grow slower than the wider market.        Given the scope of the downgrades, it would not be a surprise to see the market become more wary of the business.  

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 Xencor going out to 2025, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Of course, seeing company management invest large sums of money in a stock can be just as useful as knowing whether analysts are downgrading their estimates. So you may also wish to search this free list of stocks that insiders are buying.

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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.