Iovance Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:IOVA) Trading Up 7.7% – Still a Buy?

Iovance Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:IOVA) shot up 7.7% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $7.99 and last traded at $7.97. 2,429,683 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 7,189,960 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.40.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IOVA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics in a report on Thursday, October 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $17.00 price objective on the stock. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.00.

Iovance Biotherapeutics Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $8.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $9.24. The stock has a market cap of $2.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.13 and a beta of 0.57.

Iovance Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:IOVA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.28) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.31) by $0.03. The business had revenue of $58.56 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $53.54 million. Iovance Biotherapeutics had a negative net margin of 451.25% and a negative return on equity of 58.43%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.46) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Iovance Biotherapeutics, Inc. will post -1.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Ryan D. Maynard sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.06, for a total value of $503,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $75,450. The trade was a 86.96 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 12.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Iovance Biotherapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of IOVA. Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics by 1,237.7% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 5,003 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 4,629 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Iovance Biotherapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth about $58,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in Iovance Biotherapeutics by 754.0% in the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 8,813 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 7,781 shares in the last quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Iovance Biotherapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $89,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics by 31.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 10,978 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 2,624 shares during the period. 77.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Iovance Biotherapeutics Company Profile

Iovance Biotherapeutics, Inc, a commercial-stage biotechnology company, develops and commercializes cell therapies using autologous tumor infiltrating lymphocyte for the treatment of metastatic melanoma and other solid tumor cancers in the United States. The company offers Amtagvi, a tumor-derived autologous T cell immunotherapy used to treat adult patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma; and Proleukin, an interleukin-2 product for the treatment of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma.