Liquidia (NASDAQ:LQDA) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Liquidia from “buy” to “hold.” MarketBeat’s analyst consensus is also “hold,” with 6 holds, 4 buys, 2 sells and an average price target of $83.69.
• Liquidia’s shares opened at $28.64, well below their 52-week high of $93.61, amid significant legal and commercialization uncertainty surrounding its Yutrepia product.
• Insiders sold approximately $46.1 million of stock over the past quarter, while institutional investors own 64.54% of the company. The latest quarterly revenue surged 1,842.1% year over year to $171.68 million, though EPS narrowly missed estimates.

Liquidia (NASDAQ:LQDA - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $130.00 price target on Liquidia in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Liquidia from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Wedbush set a $58.00 target price on shares of Liquidia in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $30.00 price target (down from $108.00) on shares of Liquidia in a report on Friday. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $129.00 price objective on shares of Liquidia in a research note on Friday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $83.69.

Liquidia Stock Performance

LQDA opened at $28.64 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 2.12. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $71.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $62.02. Liquidia has a 1 year low of $21.91 and a 1 year high of $93.61. The company has a market capitalization of $2.56 billion, a PE ratio of 20.91 and a beta of 0.61.

Liquidia (NASDAQ:LQDA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The company reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.02). Liquidia had a return on equity of 149.65% and a net margin of 30.74%.The business had revenue of $171.68 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.48 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.49) earnings per share. Liquidia's revenue was up 1842.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Liquidia will post 2.57 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Katherine Rielly-Gauvin sold 36,789 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.99, for a total value of $2,758,807.11. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 44,637 shares in the company, valued at $3,347,328.63. This trade represents a 45.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Stephen M. Bloch sold 100,000 shares of Liquidia stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.48, for a total transaction of $8,948,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 501,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,872,161.96. This represents a 16.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 597,519 shares of company stock worth $46,091,764. Company insiders own 25.60% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Liquidia

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Globeflex Capital L P acquired a new stake in Liquidia during the 2nd quarter worth about $175,000. Nykredit A S acquired a new position in shares of Liquidia in the 2nd quarter valued at about $177,000. Fluent Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Liquidia in the 2nd quarter valued at about $287,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Liquidia during the 2nd quarter valued at about $335,000. Finally, Fulcrum Equity Management bought a new stake in shares of Liquidia during the 2nd quarter valued at about $399,000. Institutional investors own 64.54% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Liquidia

Here are the key news stories impacting Liquidia this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Liquidia’s legal options are not exhausted: an appeal could potentially overturn or narrow the ruling, giving investors a possible path to recovery if Yutrepia’s market opportunity is preserved. Liquidia Stock Crashed 57% in a Day After a Delaware Court Ruling
• Positive Sentiment: Despite the litigation setback, Jefferies upgraded LQDA to “strong buy,” while HC Wainwright maintained a “buy” rating and set a $58 price target. These calls indicate that some analysts believe the selloff has overstated the long-term damage or that an appeal could succeed.
• Neutral Sentiment: HC Wainwright cut its target from $130 to $58, and Needham reduced its target from $110 to $72, although both retained “buy” ratings. The sharply lower targets reflect materially higher legal and commercialization risk even among bullish analysts.
• Negative Sentiment: BTIG downgraded Liquidia to “neutral,” and Wells Fargo added to the analyst downgrades following the patent ruling. Analysts cited uncertainty over Yutrepia’s PH-ILD indication and the possibility that UTHR’s patent victory could limit Liquidia’s addressable market. Liquidia extends losses as Wells Fargo adds to downgrades
• Negative Sentiment: The court setback triggered a severe selloff, leaving LQDA on track for its worst week on record as investors reassessed Yutrepia’s revenue potential and Liquidia’s competitive position. The stock’s unusually heavy trading volume underscores the market’s heightened uncertainty. LQDA Stock On Track For Worst Week Ever

About Liquidia

Liquidia Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for patients with serious cardiopulmonary diseases and other rare conditions. The company uses its proprietary PRINT technology to engineer drug particles with controlled size, shape and composition, with the goal of improving the delivery and performance of medicines.

Liquidia's lead product is Yutrepia (treprostinil) inhalation powder, a dry-powder inhaler designed for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH).

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