Precision BioSciences’ (DTIL) “Buy” Rating Reaffirmed at HC Wainwright

HC Wainwright reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of Precision BioSciences (NASDAQ:DTIL) in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. HC Wainwright currently has a $60.00 price objective on the stock.

Separately, BMO Capital Markets raised Precision BioSciences from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $34.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th.

Precision BioSciences Stock Performance

Shares of Precision BioSciences stock opened at $4.70 on Friday. Precision BioSciences has a 12 month low of $3.61 and a 12 month high of $15.97. The company has a quick ratio of 9.22, a current ratio of 9.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $36.05 million, a PE ratio of 78.35 and a beta of 1.59. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $6.50.

Precision BioSciences (NASDAQ:DTIL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 26th. The company reported ($3.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.09) by ($1.11). Precision BioSciences had a negative return on equity of 23.69% and a net margin of 11.48%. The company had revenue of $3.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.28 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Precision BioSciences will post -1.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Precision BioSciences news, insider J. Jefferson Smith sold 10,287 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.79, for a total value of $49,274.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 87,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $418,837.60. The trade was a 10.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Amoroso sold 36,838 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.67, for a total transaction of $172,033.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 107,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $500,096.29. This trade represents a 25.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 48,243 shares of company stock worth $227,424. Company insiders own 4.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Precision BioSciences

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in shares of Precision BioSciences in the 4th quarter worth $179,000. Tang Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Precision BioSciences by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Tang Capital Management LLC now owns 673,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,565,000 after buying an additional 50,000 shares during the period. OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Precision BioSciences by 22.0% during the fourth quarter. OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 15,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 2,805 shares during the last quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Precision BioSciences by 58.0% during the 4th quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 153,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $586,000 after buying an additional 56,400 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Precision BioSciences in the 4th quarter valued at about $146,000. 37.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Precision BioSciences

Precision BioSciences, Inc, an advanced gene editing company, develops in vivo gene editing therapies for gene edits, including gene elimination, insertion, and excision in the United States. The company offers ARCUS, a genome editing platform to DNA genome insertion, deletion, and repair. It also provides PBGENE-HBV for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) to eliminate covalently closed circular DNA with direct cuts and edits as well as to inactivate integrated HBV DNA with the goal of long-lasting reductions in hepatitis B surface antigen; PBGENE-PMM for the treatment of m.3243 associated primary mitochondrial myopathy (PMM) which is expected to submit an IND and/or CTA.