Wells Fargo & Company Initiates Coverage on MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD)

Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) in a report published on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm issued an overweight rating and a $9.00 price target on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

MNKD has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on MannKind from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Royal Bank of Canada raised MannKind from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $7.00 to $10.00 in a research report on Thursday. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of MannKind to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Leerink Partners began coverage on MannKind in a research report on Monday, September 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $8.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of MannKind from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, MannKind has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $8.88.

MannKind Stock Performance

MannKind stock opened at $6.85 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.89 billion, a PE ratio of 97.86 and a beta of 1.28. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $6.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.01. MannKind has a fifty-two week low of $3.17 and a fifty-two week high of $7.63.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Stuart A. Tross sold 55,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.34, for a total value of $403,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 967,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,099,181.94. The trade was a 5.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Steven B. Binder sold 67,539 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.76, for a total value of $456,563.64. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,075,026 shares in the company, valued at $7,267,175.76. This trade represents a 5.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 190,075 shares of company stock valued at $1,325,587 in the last three months. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of MannKind

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of MannKind by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,597,137 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $60,366,000 after buying an additional 40,338 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of MannKind by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,338,928 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $39,880,000 after purchasing an additional 24,031 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of MannKind by 189.8% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 4,744,519 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $24,766,000 after acquiring an additional 3,107,598 shares during the last quarter. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC raised its holdings in MannKind by 37.1% during the 3rd quarter. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC now owns 3,304,085 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $20,783,000 after buying an additional 894,486 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its position in shares of MannKind by 60.7% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,648,327 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $16,658,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000,600 shares in 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.