MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $3.89, but opened at $4.06. MannKind shares last traded at $3.9950, with a volume of 1,925,140 shares traded.

Key Stories Impacting MannKind

Here are the key news stories impacting MannKind this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MannKind received FDA approval for Furoscix ReadyFlow, an at-home autoinjector delivering IV-equivalent diuretic therapy for edema in adults with heart failure or chronic kidney disease. The approval expands the company’s commercial opportunity in a larger treatment market and supports the stock. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company also announced a $50 million private placement, giving MannKind added funding to support development and commercialization efforts. Investors may view the financing as strengthening the balance sheet, though it adds some dilution risk. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful short position reported as of July 24, so it does not appear to be a major driver of the move. Article Title

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of MannKind from $3.50 to $4.75 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $11.00 price objective on shares of MannKind and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating on shares of MannKind in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of MannKind from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of MannKind from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, July 5th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $8.97.

MannKind Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -58.99 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $3.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $3.89.

MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.05) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $90.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $105.38 million. MannKind had a negative return on equity of 11.21% and a negative net margin of 6.63%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.04 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that MannKind Corporation will post -0.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Steven B. Binder sold 16,940 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.29, for a total transaction of $55,732.60. Following the sale, the director directly owned 808,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,658,346.32. This represents a 2.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MannKind

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MNKD. Rubric Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of MannKind in the third quarter worth about $61,297,000. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of MannKind during the 4th quarter valued at about $23,956,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of MannKind by 36.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,623,269 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $82,914,000 after purchasing an additional 3,883,071 shares during the period. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in shares of MannKind by 146.7% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 5,194,739 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,896,000 after purchasing an additional 3,088,820 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in MannKind by 316.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,467,721 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $18,622,000 after purchasing an additional 2,634,533 shares during the last quarter. 49.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About MannKind

MannKind Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of inhaled therapeutic products for endocrine and orphan lung diseases in the United States. It offers Afrezza, an inhaled insulin used to improve glycemic control in adults with diabetes, and the V-Go wearable insulin delivery device, which provides continuous subcutaneous infusion of insulin in adults. The company's product pipeline also includes Tyvaso DPI (Treprostinil), an inhalation powder for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension and pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease; MNKD-101, a nebulized formulation of clofazimine, for the treatment of severe chronic and recurrent pulmonary infections, including nontuberculous mycobacterial lung disease; MNKD-201, a dry-powder formulation of nintedanib, for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).