Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL) Reported Earnings Last Week And Analysts Are Already Upgrading Their Estimates

Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL) came out with its full-year results last week, and we wanted to see how the business is performing and what industry forecasters think of the company following this report. Revenues of US$116m arrived in line with expectations, although statutory losses per share were US$0.14, an impressive 20% smaller than what broker models predicted. 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 collected the latest post-earnings statutory consensus estimates to see what could be in store for next year.

View our latest analysis for Rigel Pharmaceuticals

Taking into account the latest results, the consensus forecast from Rigel Pharmaceuticals' six analysts is for revenues of US$148.4m in 2024. This reflects a huge 28% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Losses are predicted to fall substantially, shrinking 46% to US$0.078. Before this latest report, the consensus had been expecting revenues of US$140.3m and US$0.088 per share in losses. So it seems there's been a definite increase in optimism about Rigel Pharmaceuticals' future following the latest consensus numbers, with a favorable reduction in the loss per share forecasts in particular.

The consensus price target rose 8.1% to US$4.46, with the analysts encouraged by the higher revenue and lower forecast losses for next year. That's not the only conclusion we can draw from this data however, as some investors also like to consider the spread in estimates when evaluating analyst price targets. The most optimistic Rigel Pharmaceuticals analyst has a price target of US$15.00 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$1.00. So we wouldn't be assigning too much credibility to analyst price targets in this case, because there are clearly some widely different views on what kind of performance this business can generate. With this in mind, we wouldn't rely too heavily the consensus price target, as it is just an average and analysts clearly have some deeply divergent views on the business.

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. The analysts are definitely expecting Rigel Pharmaceuticals' growth to accelerate, with the forecast 28% annualised growth to the end of 2024 ranking favourably alongside historical growth of 12% per annum over the past five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in a similar industry are forecast to grow their revenue at 18% per year. It seems obvious that, while the growth outlook is brighter than the recent past, the analysts also expect Rigel Pharmaceuticals to grow faster than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that the analysts reconfirmed their loss per share estimates for next year. Happily, they also upgraded their revenue estimates, and are forecasting them to grow faster than the wider industry. We note an upgrade to the price target, suggesting that the analysts believes the intrinsic value of the business is likely to improve over time.

With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. We have forecasts for Rigel Pharmaceuticals going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Don't forget that there may still be risks. For instance, we've identified 3 warning signs for Rigel Pharmaceuticals (1 makes us a bit uncomfortable) you should be aware of.

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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.