Liquidia (NASDAQ:LQDA) Trading Up 9.1% – Here’s Why

by · The Markets Daily

Liquidia Corporation (NASDAQ:LQDAGet Free Report) rose 9.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $34.57 and last traded at $34.6550. Approximately 1,890,581 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 14% from the average daily volume of 1,665,680 shares. The stock had previously closed at $31.76.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Liquidia in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Liquidia from $36.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Liquidia in a report on Monday, October 20th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $31.00 price objective for the company. HC Wainwright raised their target price on Liquidia from $35.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Liquidia from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.56.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on Liquidia

Liquidia Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a P/E ratio of -25.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.48. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.19, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.20.

Liquidia (NASDAQ:LQDAGet Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.45) by $0.41. Liquidia had a negative net margin of 176.04% and a negative return on equity of 296.78%. The company had revenue of $54.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.86 million. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1106.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Liquidia Corporation will post -1.51 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Rajeev Saggar sold 71,381 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.00, for a total value of $1,927,287.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 176,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,766,823. This represents a 28.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Michael Kaseta sold 1,166 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.19, for a total value of $37,533.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 353,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,389,562.37. This represents a 0.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 169,644 shares of company stock worth $4,500,450 in the last three months. Insiders own 26.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liquidia

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ bought a new position in Liquidia in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Liquidia in the third quarter worth $34,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Liquidia during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in Liquidia by 24.0% during the second quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 6,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in Liquidia by 281.2% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,679 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 4,927 shares during the last quarter. 64.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Liquidia

(Get Free Report)

Liquidia Technologies, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. The company leverages its proprietary PRINT® (Particle Replication In Non-wetting Templates) platform to engineer precisely shaped and sized drug particles, with the goal of improving delivery, efficacy and safety profiles. By controlling particle characteristics at the nanoscale, Liquidia seeks to enhance respiratory and other therapies that depend on targeted delivery.

The company’s lead product candidate, LIQ861, is a dry powder formulation of treprostinil designed for inhalation in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH).

Featured Articles