Benitec Biopharma Limited (NASDAQ:BNTC) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Benitec Biopharma Limited (NASDAQ:BNTC) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $26.25.

BNTC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citizens Jmp upped their price target on Benitec Biopharma from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Zacks Research raised Benitec Biopharma from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, JMP Securities set a $22.00 price objective on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a report on Tuesday, November 4th.

Insider Activity

In other Benitec Biopharma news, Director Suvretta Capital Management, L acquired 77,387 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $13.44 per share, for a total transaction of $1,040,081.28. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 9,700,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $130,370,620.80. This trade represents a 0.80% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders bought 1,671,845 shares of company stock valued at $22,442,099 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Benitec Biopharma by 40.5% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 154,414 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,166,000 after acquiring an additional 44,489 shares during the period. UBS Group AG raised its stake in Benitec Biopharma by 458.8% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 99,941 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 82,057 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Benitec Biopharma by 44.5% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,937 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 904 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in Benitec Biopharma in the 3rd quarter worth $79,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Benitec Biopharma by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 992,114 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $13,919,000 after purchasing an additional 22,948 shares during the period. 52.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Benitec Biopharma Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BNTC opened at $12.18 on Friday. Benitec Biopharma has a one year low of $9.70 and a one year high of $17.15. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $13.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.24. The company has a market capitalization of $412.44 million, a P/E ratio of -10.07 and a beta of 0.19.

Benitec Biopharma (NASDAQ:BNTC) last posted its earnings results on Friday, November 14th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.35) by $0.13. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Benitec Biopharma will post -1.48 EPS for the current year.

About Benitec Biopharma

Benitec Biopharma Ltd (NASDAQ: BNTC) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing gene-silencing therapies for serious human diseases. The company’s proprietary DNA-directed RNA interference (ddRNAi) platform is designed to enable sustained expression of small RNA molecules that specifically target and silence disease-causing genes. By integrating RNAi sequences directly into DNA constructs, ddRNAi aims to provide a long-term therapeutic effect from a single administration.

Benitec’s lead programs include development of ddRNAi candidates for chronic hepatitis B virus infection and for certain ocular conditions.