Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ:CLNE) Just Reported Earnings, And Analysts Cut Their Target Price

There's been a major selloff in Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ:CLNE) shares in the week since it released its full-year report, with the stock down 35% to US$1.94. The statutory results were not great - while revenues of US$416m were in line with expectations,Clean Energy Fuels lost US$0.37 a share in the process. Earnings are an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance, look at what the analysts are forecasting for next year, and see if there's been a change in sentiment towards the company. So we gathered the latest post-earnings forecasts to see what estimates suggest is in store for next year.

Check out our latest analysis for Clean Energy Fuels

Following last week's earnings report, Clean Energy Fuels' seven analysts are forecasting 2025 revenues to be US$422.7m, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Losses are forecast to balloon 67% to US$0.62 per share. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$440.1m and losses of US$0.40 per share in 2025. While this year's revenue estimates dropped there was also a massive increase in loss per share expectations, suggesting the consensus has a bit of a mixed view on the stock.

The consensus price target fell 7.2% to US$6.73, with the analysts clearly concerned about the company following the weaker revenue and earnings outlook. Fixating on a single price target can be unwise though, since the consensus target is effectively the average of analyst price targets. As a result, some investors like to look at the range of estimates to see if there are any diverging opinions on the company's valuation. The most optimistic Clean Energy Fuels analyst has a price target of US$22.00 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$2.80. We would probably assign less value to the analyst forecasts in this situation, because such a wide range of estimates could imply that the future of this business is difficult to value accurately. As a result it might not be a great idea to make decisions based on the consensus price target, which is after all just an average of this wide range of estimates.

Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that Clean Energy Fuels' revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2025 expected to display 1.6% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 8.5% over the past five years. By way of comparison, the other companies in this industry with analyst coverage are forecast to grow their revenue at 4.3% per year. Factoring in the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Clean Energy Fuels is also expected to grow slower than other industry participants.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to note is the forecast of increased losses next year, suggesting all may not be well at Clean Energy Fuels. On the negative side, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and forecasts imply they will perform worse than the wider industry. The consensus price target fell measurably, with the analysts seemingly not reassured by the latest results, leading to a lower estimate of Clean Energy Fuels' future valuation.

Following on from that line of thought, we think that the long-term prospects of the business are much more relevant than next year's earnings. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Clean Energy Fuels going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here..

You should always think about risks though. Case in point, we've spotted 2 warning signs for Clean Energy Fuels you should be aware of.

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.