Alector, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALEC) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Alector, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALEC) has been assigned an average rating of “Reduce” from the nine analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $3.25.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ALEC. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Alector from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. HC Wainwright reduced their price objective on shares of Alector from $10.00 to $5.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Mizuho set a $1.50 price objective on shares of Alector and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. William Blair downgraded shares of Alector from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Cowen cut shares of Alector to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd.

Alector Price Performance

NASDAQ ALEC opened at $1.52 on Wednesday. Alector has a 12 month low of $0.87 and a 12 month high of $3.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $165.91 million, a PE ratio of -1.42 and a beta of 0.67. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $1.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 3.76 and a quick ratio of 3.76.

Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.34) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.08. Alector had a negative return on equity of 123.02% and a negative net margin of 156.03%.The firm had revenue of $3.26 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.49 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Alector will post -1.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Sara Kenkare-Mitra sold 41,687 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.12, for a total transaction of $46,689.44. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 501,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $561,850.24. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Arnon Rosenthal sold 104,347 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.12, for a total value of $116,868.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,420,040 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,710,444.80. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 196,104 shares of company stock worth $220,064. Insiders own 9.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Alector

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FNY Investment Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alector by 100.0% in the second quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Pinegrove Venture Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alector in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Lexington Partners L.P. acquired a new position in Alector in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Prudential Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Alector during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Belvedere Trading LLC acquired a new stake in Alector during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.83% of the company’s stock.

About Alector

Alector is a clinical-stage biotechnology company headquartered in South San Francisco, California. Founded in 2013, the company is focused on discovering and developing immuno-neurology therapies that target the innate immune system to treat a range of neurodegenerative disorders. Alector’s approach aims to harness the body’s natural defense mechanisms to clear pathological proteins and restore neuronal function in conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal dementia.

The company’s pipeline includes multiple product candidates in both preclinical and clinical stages, with lead programs AL001 and AL002 advancing in frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer’s disease studies.