It's been a mediocre week for WideOpenWest, Inc. (NYSE:WOW) shareholders, with the stock dropping 12% to US$3.04 in the week since its latest yearly results. Revenues came in at US$687m, in line with expectations, while statutory losses per share were substantially higher than expected, at US$3.53 per share. This is an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance in its report, look at what experts are forecasting for next year, and see if there has been any change to expectations for the business. With this in mind, we've gathered the latest statutory forecasts to see what the analysts are expecting for next year.
Taking into account the latest results, the five analysts covering WideOpenWest provided consensus estimates of US$647.5m revenue in 2024, which would reflect a small 5.7% decline over the past 12 months. Losses are predicted to fall substantially, shrinking 92% to US$0.29. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$653.7m and losses of US$0.21 per share in 2024. So it's pretty clear the analysts have mixed opinions on WideOpenWest even after this update; although they reconfirmed their revenue numbers, it came at the cost of a regrettable increase in per-share losses.
The consensus price target fell 11% to US$6.25per share, with the analysts clearly concerned by ballooning losses. There's another way to think about price targets though, and that's to look at the range of price targets put forward by analysts, because a wide range of estimates could suggest a diverse view on possible outcomes for the business. The most optimistic WideOpenWest analyst has a price target of US$8.00 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$4.00. This is a fairly broad spread of estimates, suggesting that analysts are forecasting a wide range of possible outcomes for the business.
One way to get more context on these forecasts is to look at how they compare to both past performance, and how other companies in the same industry are performing. One thing that stands out from these estimates is that shrinking revenues are expected to moderate over the period ending 2024 compared to the historical decline of 12% per annum over the past five years. Compare this against analyst estimates for companies in the broader industry, which suggest that revenues (in aggregate) are expected to grow 3.1% annually. So it's pretty clear that, while it does have declining revenues, the analysts also expect WideOpenWest to suffer worse than the wider industry.
The Bottom Line
The most important thing to note is the forecast of increased losses next year, suggesting all may not be well at WideOpenWest. On the plus side, there were no major changes to revenue estimates; although forecasts imply they will perform worse than the wider industry. The consensus price target fell measurably, with the analysts seemingly not reassured by the latest results, leading to a lower estimate of WideOpenWest's future valuation.
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 WideOpenWest going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here..
You should always think about risks though. Case in point, we've spotted 3 warning signs for WideOpenWest you should be aware of, and 1 of them is concerning.
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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.