Today is shaping up negative for Open Lending Corporation (NASDAQ:LPRO) shareholders, with the analysts delivering a substantial negative revision to next year's forecasts. Revenue and earnings per share (EPS) forecasts were both revised downwards, with analysts seeing grey clouds on the horizon.

Following the downgrade, the latest consensus from Open Lending's twelve analysts is for revenues of US$135m in 2024, which would reflect a reasonable 4.7% improvement in sales compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are presumed to soar 64% to US$0.31. Before this latest update, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$165m and earnings per share (EPS) of US$0.44 in 2024. Indeed, we can see that the analysts are a lot more bearish about Open Lending's prospects, administering a measurable cut to revenue estimates and slashing their EPS estimates to boot.

View our latest analysis for Open Lending

It'll come as no surprise then, to learn that the analysts have cut their price target 34% to US$7.35.

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. We would highlight that Open Lending's revenue growth is expected to slow, with the forecast 3.7% annualised growth rate until the end of 2024 being well below the historical 19% p.a. growth over the last five years. Compare this against other companies (with analyst forecasts) in the industry, which are in aggregate expected to see revenue growth of 7.7% annually. Factoring in the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Open Lending is also expected to grow slower than other industry participants.

The Bottom Line

The biggest issue in the new estimates is that analysts have reduced their earnings per share estimates, suggesting business headwinds lay ahead for Open Lending. Regrettably, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and the latest forecasts imply the business will grow sales slower than the wider market. After such a stark change in sentiment from analysts, we'd understand if readers now felt a bit wary of Open Lending.

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 Open Lending going out to 2025, 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.

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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.