Rocket Pharmaceuticals Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:RCKT)

Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RCKT) was the target of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Traders bought 7,425 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 529% compared to the average volume of 1,181 call options.

Insider Activity at Rocket Pharmaceuticals

In other Rocket Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Gaurav Shah sold 12,279 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.31, for a total transaction of $40,643.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,052,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,482,268.95. This represents a 1.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, General Counsel Martin Wilson sold 12,253 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.31, for a total value of $40,557.43. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 683,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,261,974.56. This represents a 1.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 29,415 shares of company stock worth $97,398. 24.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rocket Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RCKT. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 148.4% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 163,622 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,091,000 after acquiring an additional 97,758 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 121.8% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 747,147 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,983,000 after acquiring an additional 410,238 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in Rocket Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth approximately $189,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 24.0% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 995,690 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $6,641,000 after purchasing an additional 192,905 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,030,891 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,976,000 after purchasing an additional 36,847 shares during the period. 98.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ RCKT opened at $4.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 6.38 and a current ratio of 6.38. Rocket Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $2.19 and a fifty-two week high of $8.26. The stock has a market cap of $509.19 million, a PE ratio of -2.33 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $4.03 and a 200-day moving average of $3.63.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RCKT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.38) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.04. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.62) EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Rocket Pharmaceuticals will post -2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen upgraded Rocket Pharmaceuticals to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Lifesci Capital raised shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals from $8.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $5.00 target price on shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.79.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing gene therapies for rare, inherited pediatric diseases. The company employs a proprietary adeno-associated virus (AAV) and lentiviral vector platform to deliver functional copies of genes in patients with genetic deficiencies. Its programs target a spectrum of disorders, including Fanconi anemia, leukocyte adhesion deficiency type I and Danon disease, with the goal of delivering one-time treatments that address the underlying causes of disease rather than merely managing symptoms.

The company’s pipeline comprises multiple product candidates in various stages of development.