Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) Shares Gap Up to $5.20

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $5.20, but opened at $5.68. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $5.43, with a volume of 450,481 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AUPH. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from $9.50 to $9.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from $13.00 to $8.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 16th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $13.00 price target on shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, March 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price target on shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from $12.00 to $10.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $10.00.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.4 %

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $5.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $7.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 4.99 and a current ratio of 5.50.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.19) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by ($0.03). Aurinia Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 14.79% and a negative net margin of 32.69%. The firm had revenue of $45.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.00 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.18) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 58.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc. will post -0.06 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 95.9% in the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,673 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,798 shares during the period. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Tidemark LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale purchased a new position in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $65,000. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $92,000. 36.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing therapies to treat various diseases with unmet medical need in the United States. It offers LUPKYNIS for the treatment of adult patients with active lupus nephritis. It has a collaboration and license agreement with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd.