Aurora Innovation (NASDAQ:AUR) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Strong Sell

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Aurora Innovation from “sell” to “strong sell,” while broader analyst sentiment remains mixed: seven analysts rate it a Buy, two Hold, and two Sell, with an average rating of “Hold” and a $12.22 price target.
• Aurora shares opened at $6.45, with a $3.60–$8.56 52-week range and a market capitalization of approximately $12.65 billion.
• The company reported a quarterly loss of $0.14 per share, missing estimates by $0.02, despite revenue doubling year over year to $2 million; insiders sold about $54.3 million of stock last quarter, although one director separately purchased 82,500 shares.

Aurora Innovation (NASDAQ:AUR - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Aurora Innovation in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $14.00 price target on shares of Aurora Innovation in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $13.00 price target on shares of Aurora Innovation in a report on Thursday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Aurora Innovation from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Craig Hallum initiated coverage on Aurora Innovation in a report on Friday, June 5th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $18.00 price objective for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $12.22.

Aurora Innovation Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AUR opened at $6.45 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.65 billion, a PE ratio of -13.72 and a beta of 2.63. Aurora Innovation has a 1-year low of $3.60 and a 1-year high of $8.56. The business's fifty day moving average price is $6.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.46.

Aurora Innovation (NASDAQ:AUR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $2.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.66 million. Aurora Innovation had a negative net margin of 18,000.00% and a negative return on equity of 43.94%. The business's revenue was up 100.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.11) EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Aurora Innovation will post -0.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Aurora Innovation

In related news, Director David M. Wehner bought 82,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $6.04 per share, with a total value of $498,300.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 246,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,488,974.76. This represents a 50.30% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Reid Hoffman sold 5,498,487 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.81, for a total transaction of $42,943,183.47. Following the sale, the director owned 77,500 shares in the company, valued at $605,275. This trade represents a 98.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 7,048,487 shares of company stock valued at $54,295,119 in the last quarter. 8.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aurora Innovation

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Aurora Innovation during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Aurora Innovation in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Aurora Innovation in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC MO acquired a new stake in shares of Aurora Innovation in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. bought a new position in Aurora Innovation during the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Institutional investors own 44.71% of the company's stock.

About Aurora Innovation

Aurora Innovation, Inc is a technology company specializing in the development of self-driving vehicle systems for both passenger and commercial applications. Headquartered in Mountain View, California, Aurora has built an end-to-end platform—known as the Aurora Driver—that integrates proprietary software, machine learning algorithms and a suite of sensors (LiDAR, radar and cameras) to enable vehicles to operate safely and efficiently in diverse driving environments.

The company's core business revolves around designing, testing and deploying its autonomy stack on vehicles from established automotive and transportation partners.

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