Centaurus Financial Inc. Takes Position in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc $AUPH

Centaurus Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 61,020 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $904,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,387,194 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $54,026,000 after buying an additional 13,173 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,663,835 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $24,658,000 after acquiring an additional 73,700 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,574,957 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,121,000 after acquiring an additional 91,825 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,507,869 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $24,047,000 after acquiring an additional 22,169 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP grew its holdings in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 728.6% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,341,067 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $14,819,000 after acquiring an additional 1,179,219 shares during the period. 36.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kevin Tang purchased 343,620 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $15.28 per share, with a total value of $5,250,513.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,838,101 shares in the company, valued at $196,166,183.28. This trade represents a 2.75% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders have purchased 814,606 shares of company stock worth $12,455,129 in the last ninety days. 10.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.8%

NASDAQ:AUPH opened at $14.88 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $15.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.34. The company has a market capitalization of $1.91 billion, a PE ratio of 6.86 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 5.55 and a quick ratio of 5.01. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc has a 1-year low of $8.85 and a 1-year high of $19.25.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.07. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 99.97% and a return on equity of 26.62%. The company had revenue of $77.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $76.98 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc will post 0.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AUPH shares. Zacks Research lowered Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Weiss Ratings lowered Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aurinia Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.33.

About Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

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.