Liquidia (NASDAQ:LQDA) Stock Price Up 7.2% – Here’s What Happened

Liquidia Corporation (NASDAQ:LQDA)’s stock price shot up 7.2% during mid-day trading on Friday. The company traded as high as $42.37 and last traded at $42.5550. 2,562,494 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 13% from the average session volume of 2,260,279 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.69.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on LQDA shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Liquidia from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Liquidia from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 3rd. Stephens set a $130.00 price target on shares of Liquidia in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Lifesci Capital upgraded shares of Liquidia from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $59.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $129.00 price objective on shares of Liquidia in a research report on Friday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Liquidia has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $72.85.

Liquidia Stock Up 7.5%

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.58. The company has a market capitalization of $3.82 billion, a PE ratio of 31.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 2.12.

Liquidia (NASDAQ:LQDA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.02). Liquidia had a return on equity of 149.65% and a net margin of 30.74%. The company had revenue of $171.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $168.48 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.49) EPS. Liquidia’s quarterly revenue was up 1842.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Liquidia Corporation will post 2.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Liquidia

In related news, insider Rajeev Saggar sold 9,218 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.48, for a total transaction of $262,528.64. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 126,368 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,598,960.64. The trade was a 6.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Sarah Krepp sold 5,245 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.48, for a total value of $149,377.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 115,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,282,063.68. This represents a 4.35% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders sold 566,598 shares of company stock worth $25,848,390. Insiders own 25.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LQDA. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Liquidia by 839.1% in the third quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,329 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 2,081 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Liquidia by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,634 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Globeflex Capital L P purchased a new stake in Liquidia during the 2nd quarter worth $175,000. Nykredit A S purchased a new stake in Liquidia during the 2nd quarter worth $177,000. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Liquidia in the 1st quarter worth $247,000. 64.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Liquidia

Liquidia Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for patients with pulmonary hypertension and other serious cardiopulmonary diseases. The company is headquartered in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, and uses its proprietary PRINT technology to engineer drug particles with controlled size, shape and composition for inhaled and injectable medicines.

Liquidia’s lead product is Yutrepia (treprostinil) inhalation powder, a dry-powder formulation of treprostinil delivered through a proprietary inhaler.