Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:AUPH) Receives $17.25 Average PT from Brokerages

Shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $17.25.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on AUPH shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kevin Tang bought 206,005 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $15.28 per share, with a total value of $3,147,756.40. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 13,044,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,313,939.68. This represents a 1.60% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have acquired 814,606 shares of company stock worth $12,455,129. Company insiders own 10.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 411.9% during the 1st quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,471 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 2,793 shares during the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $82,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. grew its stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 1,008.1% in the 1st quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 6,815 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $101,000 after buying an additional 6,200 shares in the last quarter. 36.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 2.6%

NASDAQ:AUPH opened at $15.64 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $16.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $15.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.21 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a current ratio of 5.55, a quick ratio of 5.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $8.55 and a 1-year high of $19.25.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.07. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 26.62% and a net margin of 99.97%.The firm had revenue of $77.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $76.98 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Aurinia Pharmaceuticals will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.