Cytokinetics (NASDAQ:CYTK) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

Cytokinetics, Incorporated (NASDAQ:CYTK)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Friday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $47.00 to $41.00. The stock had previously closed at $42.92, but opened at $37.68. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Cytokinetics shares last traded at $35.42, with a volume of 2,587,068 shares changing hands.

Several other research analysts have also commented on CYTK. Citigroup assumed coverage on Cytokinetics in a report on Friday, February 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $86.00 price target on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $72.00 target price on shares of Cytokinetics in a report on Friday. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Cytokinetics from $62.00 to $54.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of Cytokinetics in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on Cytokinetics in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $80.00 price objective for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $76.88.

Insider Activity at Cytokinetics

In other Cytokinetics news, CEO Robert I. Blum sold 16,970 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.44, for a total value of $737,176.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 364,181 shares in the company, valued at $15,820,022.64. The trade was a 4.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Wendall Wierenga sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.46, for a total value of $769,200.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 24,848 shares in the company, valued at $955,654.08. This represents a 44.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 93,360 shares of company stock worth $3,848,445. Corporate insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cytokinetics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CYTK. Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in Cytokinetics in the first quarter valued at approximately $732,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Cytokinetics by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 33,100 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,330,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Cytokinetics by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 28,200 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,133,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA purchased a new stake in shares of Cytokinetics during the 1st quarter worth $330,000. Finally, Harvey Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Cytokinetics by 2.1% during the first quarter. Harvey Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,580 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $907,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares in the last quarter.

Cytokinetics Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.94 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.93, a current ratio of 9.28 and a quick ratio of 9.28. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.74.

Cytokinetics (NASDAQ:CYTK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.26) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.29) by $0.03. The business had revenue of $16.93 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.26 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Cytokinetics, Incorporated will post -5.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Cytokinetics Company Profile

Cytokinetics, Incorporated, a late-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on discovering, developing, and commercializing muscle activators and inhibitors as potential treatments for debilitating diseases. The company develops small molecule drug candidates primarily engineered to impact muscle function and contractility.