Enanta Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENTA) Third-Quarter Results: Here's What Analysts Are Forecasting For Next Year

Enanta Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENTA) just released its latest quarterly results and things are looking bullish. The overall earnings picture was okay, with revenues of US$18m beating expectations by 17%. Statutory losses were US$0.85 per share, only marginally better than what the analysts had forecast. Following the result, the analysts have updated their earnings model, and it would be good to know whether they think there's been a strong change in the company's prospects, or if it's business as usual. Readers will be glad to know we've aggregated the latest statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their mind on Enanta Pharmaceuticals after the latest results.

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Taking into account the latest results, Enanta Pharmaceuticals' five analysts currently expect revenues in 2026 to be US$65.6m, approximately in line with the last 12 months. The loss per share is expected to greatly reduce in the near future, narrowing 23% to US$3.30. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$64.5m and losses of US$3.52 per share in 2026. It looks like there's been a modest increase in sentiment in the recent updates, with the analysts becoming a bit more optimistic in their predictions for losses per share, even though the revenue numbers were unchanged.

See our latest analysis for Enanta Pharmaceuticals

The average price target held steady at US$17.67, seeming to indicate that business is performing in line with expectations. The consensus price target is just an average of individual analyst targets, so - it could be handy to see how wide the range of underlying estimates is. The most optimistic Enanta Pharmaceuticals analyst has a price target of US$25.00 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$7.00. As you can see the range of estimates is wide, with the lowest valuation coming in at less than half the most bullish estimate, suggesting there are some strongly diverging views on how analysts think this business will perform. 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.

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. It's also worth noting that the years of declining revenue look to have come to an end, with the forecast stauing flat to the end of 2026. Historically, Enanta Pharmaceuticals' top line has shrunk approximately 13% annually over the past five years. Compare this against analyst estimates for the broader industry, which suggest that (in aggregate) industry revenues are expected to grow 19% annually. So it's pretty clear that, although revenues are improving, Enanta Pharmaceuticals is still expected to grow slower than the industry.

The Bottom Line

The most obvious conclusion is that the analysts made no changes to their forecasts for a loss next year. Fortunately, the analysts also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Although our data does suggest that Enanta Pharmaceuticals' revenue is expected to perform worse than the wider industry. There was no real change to the consensus price target, suggesting that the intrinsic value of the business has not undergone any major changes with the latest estimates.

Keeping that in mind, we still think that the longer term trajectory of the business is much more important for investors to consider. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Enanta Pharmaceuticals going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here..

Even so, be aware that Enanta Pharmaceuticals is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis , you should know about...

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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.