What's Going On With Life Science-Focused Repligen Stock Today?

Repligen Corporation RGEN reported fourth-quarter 2023 adjusted EPS of $0.33, in line with the consensus estimate.

The life science company reported sales of $155.74 million, down from $186.8 million a year ago, beating the consensus of $155.39 million.

Base revenue (non-GAAP) for the quarter was $142.1 million, compared to $163.0 million a year ago.

Tony Hunt, CEO, said, “During the fourth quarter, we again saw order strength, driven by our Filtration and Analytics franchises and continued momentum from new modality accounts, which reflects the differentiated nature of our products in this market. We are pleased to report that for the second quarter in a row, our book-to-bill ratio was above 1.0, at 1.03 for the fourth quarter.”

The company says it witnessed positive momentum in new modalities, including cell and gene therapies, with fourth-quarter revenue up 5% sequentially and 9% Y/Y.

Guidance: “While there are still pockets of headwinds and challenging macro factors in China, we remain optimistic that our markets will improve as we advance through 2024, with growth accelerating in the second half of the year,” Hunt added.

Repligen forecasts fiscal year 2024 revenue of $620 million-$650 million versus the consensus of $660.71 million. The company expects 2024 adjusted EPS of $1.42-$1.49, way below the consensus of $1.77.

William Blair notes that the 2024 guidance aligns with the prevailing trend of conservative outlooks among management teams to avoid a repetition of the 2023 performance shortfall. 

However, the real source of pressure on shares appears to stem from the EBITDA guide, indicating an 18%-19% margin, with the midpoint at $117.5 million—nearly 30% below the Street’s estimate of $151 million. 

Investors are likely to concentrate on details such as the level of conservatism in the profitability outlook, the timing of a return to growth in the 2024 outlook, any remaining destocking dynamics, initial order trends for 2024, and the short- and long-term prospects for China. William Blair maintains an Outperform rating.

Price Action: RGEN shares are down 0.40% at $198.93 on the last check Wednesday.