Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) Cut to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings cut Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.25.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of AUPH opened at $15.24 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.02 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 5.55 and a quick ratio of 5.01. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $8.80 and a one year high of $19.25. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $15.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.36.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $77.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $76.98 million. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 26.62% and a net margin of 99.97%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Aurinia Pharmaceuticals will post 0.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Aurinia Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Kevin Tang purchased 343,620 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was bought at an average price of $15.28 per share, for a total transaction of $5,250,513.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,838,101 shares in the company, valued at $196,166,183.28. This represents a 2.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last 90 days, insiders have bought 814,606 shares of company stock valued at $12,455,129. 10.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AUPH. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 411.9% in the 1st quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,471 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 2,793 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth $48,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth $82,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 25.9% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 6,407 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 1,318 shares during the period. 36.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for autoimmune diseases. The company’s proprietary molecule, voclosporin, is designed to selectively inhibit calcineurin and reduce inflammation associated with autoimmune responses. Aurinia operates research and development facilities in Canada and the United States, leveraging collaborations with academic institutions and contract research organizations to advance its clinical pipeline.

The company’s lead product, voclosporin (marketed as LUPKYNIS), received approval from the U.S.