MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) Shares Gap Up on Analyst Upgrade

MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday after Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on the stock from $7.00 to $8.00. The stock had previously closed at $3.90, but opened at $4.12. Royal Bank Of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the stock. MannKind shares last traded at $4.02, with a volume of 884,788 shares trading hands.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on MNKD. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $9.00 target price on shares of MannKind in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded MannKind from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $9.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at MannKind

In other news, Director Steven B. Binder sold 75,367 shares of MannKind stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.94, for a total transaction of $296,945.98. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 830,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,272,201.52. This trade represents a 8.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MannKind

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Quaker Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MannKind by 200.0% during the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 14,000 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of MannKind by 1,379.2% in the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,396 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 6,896 shares during the period. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in shares of MannKind in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of MannKind in the second quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Master S Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of MannKind in the second quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.55% of the company’s stock.

MannKind Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.25 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $3.82 and a 200 day moving average of $4.46.

MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04 by $0.01. MannKind had a negative return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 10.87%.The company had revenue of $76.53 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $77.82 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.05 earnings per share. MannKind’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that MannKind Corporation will post 0.1 EPS for the current year.

MannKind Company Profile

MannKind Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of inhaled therapeutic products for endocrine and orphan lung diseases in the United States. It offers Afrezza, an inhaled insulin used to improve glycemic control in adults with diabetes, and the V-Go wearable insulin delivery device, which provides continuous subcutaneous infusion of insulin in adults.