Zai Lab (NASDAQ:ZLAB) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Zai Lab Limited (NASDAQ:ZLAB) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $40.63, but opened at $38.38. Zai Lab shares last traded at $37.78, with a volume of 125,578 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Zai Lab in a report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Zai Lab in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $36.10 price objective (up previously from $29.00) on shares of Zai Lab in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Zai Lab from $44.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th.

Zai Lab Trading Down 9.4%

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $32.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.06 billion, a PE ratio of -13.29 and a beta of 0.96.

Zai Lab (NASDAQ:ZLAB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.45) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.50) by $0.05. The business had revenue of $106.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $118.40 million. Zai Lab had a negative return on equity of 36.97% and a negative net margin of 76.14%. Equities research analysts forecast that Zai Lab Limited will post -2.58 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Ying Du sold 5,808 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.89, for a total transaction of $208,449.12. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 476,046 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,085,290.94. This trade represents a 1.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Frazor Titus Edmondson III sold 4,369 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.89, for a total value of $156,803.41. Following the sale, the insider now owns 27,217 shares in the company, valued at $976,818.13. This trade represents a 13.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 127,207 shares of company stock worth $3,765,009 over the last ninety days. 4.96% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of ZLAB. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Zai Lab in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,073,000. MPM Bioimpact LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Zai Lab by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. MPM Bioimpact LLC now owns 833,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,128,000 after purchasing an additional 33,659 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Zai Lab during the 1st quarter valued at $12,649,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Zai Lab by 29.0% during the 1st quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 93,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,384,000 after buying an additional 21,026 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Zai Lab by 214.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 13,771 shares of the company’s stock worth $498,000 after buying an additional 9,390 shares during the last quarter. 41.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Zai Lab Company Profile

Zai Lab Limited develops and commercializes therapies to treat oncology, autoimmune disorders, infectious diseases, and neuroscience. Its commercial products include Zejula, an orally administered poly polymerase 1/2 inhibitor; Optune, a cancer therapy that uses electric fields tuned to specific frequencies to kill tumor cells; NUZYRA for acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections, and community acquired bacterial pneumonia; Qinlock to treat gastrointestinal stromal tumors, and VYVGART, a human IgG1 antibody fragment for myesthenia gravis.