Veru Inc. (VERU) is about to face the quarterly earnings spotlight, and Wall Street's sharpest analysts have been recalibrating their expectations ahead of Wednesday's report.
The Miami-based company will release its fourth quarter results before the opening bell on December 17. Analysts are projecting a quarterly loss of 39 cents per share, which would represent an improvement from the 52 cents per share loss recorded in the same period last year.
Recent corporate activity has added some context to the earnings picture. Back on October 30, Veru priced a $25 million public offering, selling 1.4 million shares of common stock at $3.00 per unit. That pricing looks particularly interesting given where the stock is trading now: shares closed at $2.39 on Monday, down 1.2% for the session.
What the Top Analysts Are Saying
The analyst community has been busy revising their outlooks, and the range of price targets tells an interesting story about the divergent views on Veru's prospects.
Raymond James analyst Gary Nachman, who maintains an accuracy rate of 62%, kept his Outperform rating but made a significant adjustment on August 13, slashing his price target from $30 down to $20. That's quite a haircut, even if the fundamental thesis remains bullish.
HC Wainwright & Co. analyst Yi Chen takes a more conservative view. On January 2, Chen maintained a Buy rating but set a price target of just $3. With an accuracy rate of 66%, Chen's target sits almost exactly where the company priced its recent offering.
The most optimistic voice comes from Oppenheimer analyst Leland Gershell, who also happens to have the highest accuracy rate of the bunch at 75%. Gershell maintained an Outperform rating on November 5 with a $5 price target, suggesting he sees roughly double the upside from current levels.
The wide spread in price targets—from $3 to $20—reflects genuine uncertainty about Veru's path forward. Wednesday's earnings report might help narrow that gap, or it could widen it further. Either way, investors will be watching closely to see if management can deliver results that justify even the most conservative bullish case.