LSB Industries, Inc. (NYSE:LXU) Just Reported, And Analysts Assigned A US$10.18 Price Target

LSB Industries, Inc. (NYSE:LXU) just released its latest first-quarter report and things are not looking great. Revenues missed expectations somewhat, coming in at US$83m, but statutory earnings fell catastrophically short, with a loss of US$1.01 some 29% larger than what the analyst had predicted. This is an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance in its report, look at what expert is forecasting for next year, and see if there has been any change to expectations for the business. We've gathered the most recent statutory forecasts to see whether the analyst has changed their earnings models, following these results.

Check out our latest analysis for LSB Industries

Taking into account the latest results, the current consensus from LSB Industries' one analyst is for revenues of US$396.2m in 2020, which would reflect a notable 12% increase on its sales over the past 12 months. Losses are predicted to fall substantially, shrinking 36% to US$2.40. Before this latest report, the consensus had been expecting revenues of US$398.0m and US$1.94 per share in losses. While this year's revenue estimates held steady, there was also a loss per share expectations, suggesting the consensus has a bit of a mixed view on the stock.

With the increase in forecast losses for next year, it's perhaps no surprise to see that the average price target dipped 6.9% to US$10.18, with the analyst signalling that growing losses would be a definite concern.

Taking a look at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can understand these forecasts is to see how they compare to both past performance and industry growth estimates. For example, we noticed that LSB Industries' rate of growth is expected to accelerate meaningfully, with revenues forecast to grow 12%, well above its historical decline of 9.7% a year over the past five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the industry are forecast to see their revenue grow 4.6% per year. Not only are LSB Industries' revenues expected to improve, it seems that the analyst is also expecting it to grow faster than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that the analyst increased their loss per share estimates for next year. Fortunately, they also reconfirmed their revenue numbers, suggesting sales are tracking in line with expectations - and our data suggests that revenues are expected to grow faster than the wider industry. Furthermore, the analyst also cut their price targets, suggesting that the latest news has led to greater pessimism about the intrinsic value of the business.

With that in mind, we wouldn't be too quick to come to a conclusion on LSB Industries. Long-term earnings power is much more important than next year's profits. At least one analyst has provided forecasts out to 2021, which can be seen for free on our platform here.

We don't want to rain on the parade too much, but we did also find 4 warning signs for LSB Industries that you need to be mindful of.

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