Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $16.88 and last traded at $16.5050, with a volume of 162989 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.42.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.25.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 5.25 and a quick ratio of 4.76. The firm has a market cap of $2.17 billion, a PE ratio of 7.85 and a beta of 1.51. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $14.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.66.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $1.32. The company had revenue of $77.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $74.70 million. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 101.46% and a return on equity of 27.47%. Research analysts forecast that Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc will post 0.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Kevin Tang acquired 516,439 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $13.99 per share, for a total transaction of $7,224,981.61. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 11,845,939 shares in the company, valued at $165,724,686.61. This trade represents a 4.56% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 12.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $82,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at approximately $91,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in 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 valued at $102,000 after buying an additional 1,318 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.83% of the company’s stock.

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.