KalVista Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:KALV) Stock Rating Lowered by JonesTrading

KalVista Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:KALV) was downgraded by stock analysts at JonesTrading from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Wall Street Zen cut KalVista Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. HC Wainwright upped their price target on KalVista Pharmaceuticals from $27.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on KalVista Pharmaceuticals from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Citizens Jmp cut KalVista Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.60.

KalVista Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KALV opened at $26.66 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $18.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.72. KalVista Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $9.83 and a fifty-two week high of $26.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.75 and a beta of -0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.18, a current ratio of 7.22 and a quick ratio of 7.21.

Insider Activity at KalVista Pharmaceuticals

In other news, CEO Benjamin L. Palleiko sold 9,550 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.22, for a total transaction of $193,101.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 462,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,353,306.94. This represents a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, major shareholder Venrock Healthcare Capital Par sold 39,986 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.28, for a total value of $730,944.08. Following the sale, the insider owned 5,089,354 shares in the company, valued at $93,033,391.12. The trade was a 0.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 263,969 shares of company stock valued at $4,536,178. 4.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of KalVista Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 47.0% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,041 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,292 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank acquired a new position in shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at $55,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at $57,000. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 253.8% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 4,684 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 3,360 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at $63,000.

Trending Headlines about KalVista Pharmaceuticals

Here are the key news stories impacting KalVista Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Chiesi Group agreed to acquire KalVista for about $1.9 billion and to buy shares for $27.00 in cash — the deal highlights Chiesi’s push into rare-disease/HAE treatment Ekterly and is the primary catalyst for the stock’s jump. Chiesi to buy KalVista in $1.9B deal
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction: shares surged roughly 38–39% on the takeover news and trading volume spiked well above average, reflecting investor demand to capture the cash takeover consideration. KalVista stock surges 39%
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading mechanics: trading in KALV was temporarily halted prior to the announcement for “news pending,” a routine step that precedes major corporate news and can amplify post-release moves. (Company/regulatory filings reflected the halt.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst view: Needham & Company reaffirmed a “hold” rating on KalVista — a reminder some analysts view the takeover price as fair or limited upside beyond the offer. Needham reaffirms hold
• Negative Sentiment: Litigation risk: multiple shareholder-alerts and law-firm investigations (Ademi LLP and Monteverde & Associates) have been announced questioning whether the $27.00 per-share deal is fair and whether fiduciary duties were met — these actions could delay closing, prompt a negotiated price change, or produce settlement costs. Ademi LLP shareholder alert Monteverde investigation

KalVista Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

KalVista Pharmaceuticals is a clinical?stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of small?molecule protease inhibitors for orphan and specialty disease indications. The firm’s scientific platform centers on selective inhibition of plasma kallikrein, a serine protease implicated in disorders characterized by vascular leak, edema and inflammation. KalVista’s approach leverages oral and intravitreal delivery formats to target both systemic and ophthalmic conditions.

The company’s lead programs include an oral plasma kallikrein inhibitor in clinical trials for the acute treatment of hereditary angioedema (HAE) attacks and an intravitreal kallikrein inhibitor being evaluated for diabetic macular edema.