Lyell Immunopharma (NASDAQ:LYEL) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Lyell Immunopharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:LYEL) gapped down prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $24.78, but opened at $23.24. Lyell Immunopharma shares last traded at $23.1450, with a volume of 3,350 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LYEL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC started coverage on shares of Lyell Immunopharma in a report on Friday, April 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $44.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lyell Immunopharma from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Lyell Immunopharma in a research note on Tuesday. Zacks Research lowered Lyell Immunopharma from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Citizens Jmp started coverage on Lyell Immunopharma in a research note on Monday, March 9th. They issued a “market outperform” rating and a $34.00 price objective on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.00.

Lyell Immunopharma Price Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $22.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $522.83 million, a P/E ratio of -1.37 and a beta of -0.06.

Lyell Immunopharma (NASDAQ:LYEL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported ($7.68) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($2.15) by ($5.53). The business had revenue of $0.01 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.02 million. Lyell Immunopharma had a negative return on equity of 90.52% and a negative net margin of 762,355.56%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Lyell Immunopharma, Inc. will post -10.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Gary K. Lee sold 1,671 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.39, for a total transaction of $39,084.69. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,938 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,179.82. This trade represents a 8.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Stephen J. Hill sold 1,236 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.39, for a total transaction of $28,910.04. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 17,795 shares in the company, valued at $416,225.05. The trade was a 6.49% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,310 shares of company stock worth $264,285. Corporate insiders own 22.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lyell Immunopharma

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LYEL. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Lyell Immunopharma by 773.5% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 174,279 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 154,327 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Lyell Immunopharma in the second quarter valued at about $94,000. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lyell Immunopharma in the second quarter worth about $159,000. BBR Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lyell Immunopharma during the fourth quarter worth about $210,000. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lyell Immunopharma during the second quarter worth about $258,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.05% of the company’s stock.

About Lyell Immunopharma

Lyell Immunopharma is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing next-generation T cell therapies for cancer. Leveraging a proprietary platform that combines cell therapy, gene editing and molecular discovery, Lyell seeks to overcome key barriers in the treatment of solid tumors. The company’s approach centers on engineering T cells to enhance their persistence, functionality and resistance to the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment.

The company’s pipeline includes multiple autologous T cell programs engineered to target tumor-associated antigens in solid malignancies such as melanoma, ovarian and pancreatic cancers.