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Zymeworks Inc. (NASDAQ:ZYME) shareholders will have a reason to smile today, with the analysts making substantial upgrades to this year's forecasts. The consensus statutory numbers for both revenue and earnings per share (EPS) increased, with their view clearly much more bullish on the company's business prospects.
Following the upgrade, the current consensus from Zymeworks' seven analysts is for revenues of US$95m in 2025 which - if met - would reflect a huge 25% increase on its sales over the past 12 months. The loss per share is anticipated to greatly reduce in the near future, narrowing 20% to US$1.40. However, before this estimates update, the consensus had been expecting revenues of US$84m and US$1.61 per share in losses. We can see there's definitely been a change in sentiment in this update, with the analysts administering a sizeable upgrade to this year's revenue estimates, while at the same time reducing their loss estimates.
View our latest analysis for Zymeworks
Despite these upgrades, the analysts have not made any major changes to their price target of US$19.61, implying that their latest estimates don't have a long term impact on what they think the stock is worth.
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 Zymeworks' revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2025 expected to display 25% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 33% over the past five years. Juxtapose this against the other companies in the industry with analyst coverage, which are forecast to grow their revenues (in aggregate) 20% annually. So it's pretty clear that, while Zymeworks' revenue growth is expected to slow, it's expected to grow roughly in line with the industry.
The Bottom Line
The highlight for us was that the consensus reduced its estimated losses this year, perhaps suggesting Zymeworks is moving incrementally towards profitability. They also upgraded their revenue forecasts, although the latest estimates suggest that Zymeworks will grow in line with the overall market. The lack of change in the price target is puzzling, but with a serious upgrade to this year's earnings expectations, it might be time to take another look at Zymeworks.
Still, the long-term prospects of the business are much more relevant than next year's earnings. We have estimates - from multiple Zymeworks analysts - going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here.