Analyst Forecasts Just Became More Bearish On Cellectis S.A. (EPA:ALCLS)

One thing we could say about the analysts on Cellectis S.A. (EPA:ALCLS) - they aren't optimistic, having just made a major negative revision to their near-term (statutory) forecasts for the organization. There was a fairly draconian cut to their revenue estimates, perhaps an implicit admission that previous forecasts were much too optimistic. Bidders are definitely seeing a different story, with the stock price of €3.56 reflecting a 29% rise in the past week. It will be interesting to see if the downgrade has an impact on buying demand for the company's shares.

Following the downgrade, the most recent consensus for Cellectis from its ten analysts is for revenues of US$45m in 2022 which, if met, would be a substantial 54% increase on its sales over the past 12 months. Losses are supposed to balloon 47% to US$3.66 per share. Yet before this consensus update, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$61m and losses of US$3.55 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.

See our latest analysis for Cellectis

Taking a look at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can understand these forecasts is to see how they compare to both past performance and industry growth estimates. The analysts are definitely expecting Cellectis' growth to accelerate, with the forecast 136% annualised growth to the end of 2022 ranking favourably alongside historical growth of 16% per annum over the past five years. Compare this with other companies in the same industry, which are forecast to grow their revenue 30% annually. Factoring in the forecast acceleration in revenue, it's pretty clear that Cellectis is expected to grow much faster than its 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 Cellectis. While analysts did downgrade their revenue estimates, these forecasts still imply revenues will perform better than the wider market. Overall, given the drastic downgrade to this year's forecasts, we'd be feeling a little more wary of Cellectis going forwards.

Even so, the longer term trajectory of the business is much more important for the value creation of shareholders. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Cellectis 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.

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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.