Centessa Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CNTA) Shares Up 8.4% Following Earnings Beat

Shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:CNTA) rose 8.4% during trading on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $18.55 and last traded at $18.42. Approximately 252,708 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 36% from the average daily volume of 397,666 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.00.

The company reported ($0.37) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.05.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CNTA. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $11.00 to $26.00 in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $14.00 price objective on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. B. Riley began coverage on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $33.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals from $20.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $25.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Gregory M. Weinhoff sold 12,198 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.17, for a total transaction of $148,449.66. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 241,171 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,935,051.07. This trade represents a 4.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Saurabh Saha sold 175,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.52, for a total transaction of $2,891,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 776,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,834,784.48. This trade represents a 18.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 325,031 shares of company stock worth $5,213,043. Insiders own 11.59% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 16.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,958,079 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,427,000 after buying an additional 418,615 shares during the period. Nantahala Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Centessa Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $4,064,000. Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 89.5% during the second quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 2,092,011 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,891,000 after buying an additional 987,997 shares during the period. First Light Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 59.2% in the second quarter. First Light Asset Management LLC now owns 4,780,560 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,168,000 after purchasing an additional 1,778,515 shares during the period. Finally, Farallon Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 438.0% in the second quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,996,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,024,000 after purchasing an additional 1,625,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.01% of the company’s stock.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 3.2 %

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $15.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 13.29 and a quick ratio of 13.29. The firm has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a PE ratio of -11.44 and a beta of 1.47.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and delivers medicines for patients. Its products pipeline includes SerpinPC, an activated protein C inhibitor for the treatment of hemophilia A and B; and ORX750, an orally administered OX2R agonist for the treatment of narcolepsy and other sleep disorders.