Yahoo Finance The Consensus EPS Estimates For Cenovus Energy Inc. (TSE:CVE) Just Fell Dramatically
The analysts covering Cenovus Energy Inc. (TSE:CVE) delivered a dose of negativity to shareholders today, by making a substantial revision to their statutory forecasts for this year. Revenue and earnings per share (EPS) forecasts were both revised downwards, with analysts seeing grey clouds on the horizon. Investors however, have been notably more optimistic about Cenovus Energy recently, with the stock price up a whopping 43% to CA$3.35 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 latest downgrade, the seven analysts covering Cenovus Energy provided consensus estimates of CA$13b revenue in 2020, which would reflect a concerning 37% decline on its sales over the past 12 months. Following this this downgrade, earnings are now expected to tip over into loss-making territory, with the analysts forecasting losses of CA$0.67 per share in 2020. Yet prior to the latest estimates, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of CA$14b and losses of CA$0.43 per share in 2020. 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 Cenovus Energy
The consensus price target fell 16% to CA$7.26, 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. There are some variant perceptions on Cenovus Energy, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at CA$16.00 and the most bearish at CA$2.50 per share. 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 think this business will perform. As a result it might not be possible to derive much meaning from 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. These estimates imply that sales are expected to slow, with a forecast revenue decline of 37%, a significant reduction from annual growth of 9.1% over the last five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the industry are forecast to see their revenue decline 0.4% annually for the foreseeable future. The forecasts do look bearish for Cenovus Energy, since they're expecting it to shrink faster than the 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 Cenovus Energy. Unfortunately they also cut their revenue estimates for this year, and they expect sales to lag the wider market. That said, earnings per share are more important for creating value for shareholders. With a serious cut to this year's expectations and a falling price target, we wouldn't be surprised if investors were becoming wary of Cenovus Energy.
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 Cenovus Energy going out to 2022, 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.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.
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