Altimmune (NASDAQ:ALT) Shares Up 7.2% – Time to Buy?

Altimmune, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALT)’s stock price was up 7.2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $5.48 and last traded at $5.4650. Approximately 2,268,356 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 65% from the average daily volume of 6,454,089 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.10.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Altimmune in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Citizens Jmp cut their price objective on Altimmune from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 7th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $12.00 target price on shares of Altimmune in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Altimmune in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on Altimmune in a research report on Tuesday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $20.00 price objective on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Altimmune presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $17.17.

Altimmune Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 17.18 and a quick ratio of 17.18. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $4.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $4.16. The firm has a market cap of $631.85 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.23 and a beta of 0.04.

Altimmune (NASDAQ:ALT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.21) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.29) by $0.08. Altimmune had a negative net margin of 419,575.00% and a negative return on equity of 54.79%. The business had revenue of $0.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $0.00 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Altimmune, Inc. will post -1.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John Gill acquired 12,500 shares of Altimmune stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $4.10 per share, with a total value of $51,250.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 12,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,250. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jerome Benedict Durso purchased 12,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $4.13 per share, with a total value of $51,625.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 12,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,625. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders purchased a total of 30,527 shares of company stock worth $125,278 in the last 90 days. 4.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Altimmune

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Altimmune by 13.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,934,880 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,489,000 after purchasing an additional 228,995 shares during the last quarter. Brown Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Altimmune by 131.0% in the 2nd quarter. Brown Wealth Management LLC now owns 231,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $894,000 after acquiring an additional 131,059 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Altimmune by 102.9% during the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 144,890 shares of the company’s stock worth $561,000 after purchasing an additional 73,482 shares during the last quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Altimmune in the 2nd quarter worth about $610,000. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Altimmune by 16.4% in the second quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 25,258 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,000 after acquiring an additional 3,565 shares during the last quarter. 78.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Altimmune

Altimmune, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, dedicated to the development of vaccines and immunotherapeutics. The company leverages proprietary technology platforms to create intranasal vaccine candidates and novel therapies targeting liver diseases and metabolic disorders. Altimmune’s approach emphasizes the stimulation of both systemic and mucosal immune responses to address unmet medical needs in infectious and chronic conditions.

Among its lead programs, NasoVAX is an investigational intranasal influenza vaccine designed to provide broad, long-lasting protection through a single, non-invasive dose.