Autolus Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AUTL) Trading Down 3.5% Following Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Autolus Therapeutics' stock fell 3.5% after Wells Fargo downgraded its price target from $6.00 to $5.00, while maintaining an overweight rating.
• Despite the downgrade, Needham & Company reissued a "buy" rating and set a target price of $10.00, contributing to an average consensus target price of $9.12.
• Institutional investors hold 72.83% of Autolus Therapeutics' stock, with significant increases in holdings reported by several hedge funds in the recent quarter.

Autolus Therapeutics PLC Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:AUTL - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 3.5% on Wednesday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $6.00 to $5.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Autolus Therapeutics traded as low as $2.02 and last traded at $2.09. Approximately 579,562 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 67% from the average daily volume of 1,774,031 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.16.

Separately, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $10.00 target price on shares of Autolus Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Autolus Therapeutics currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $9.12.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Virtus ETF Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Autolus Therapeutics by 29.9% during the 4th quarter. Virtus ETF Advisers LLC now owns 26,429 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 6,081 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Autolus Therapeutics by 1,094.3% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 11,859 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 10,866 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new position in Autolus Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Autolus Therapeutics by 53.3% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 32,738 shares of the company's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 11,381 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its holdings in Autolus Therapeutics by 63.5% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 30,432 shares of the company's stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 11,821 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 72.83% of the company's stock.

Autolus Therapeutics Trading Down 3.9%

The stock has a market cap of $552.24 million, a P/E ratio of -2.35 and a beta of 1.90. The firm's fifty day moving average is $2.34 and its 200 day moving average is $1.90.

Autolus Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AUTL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 12th. The company reported ($0.18) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by $0.06. The company had revenue of $13.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.92 million. Research analysts forecast that Autolus Therapeutics PLC Sponsored ADR will post -0.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Autolus Therapeutics

Autolus Therapeutics plc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, develops T cell therapies for the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases. The company's clinical-stage programs include obecabtagene autoleucel (AUTO1), a CD19-targeting programmed T cell investigational therapy that is in Phase 1b/2 clinical trial for the treatment of adult ALL; AUTO1/22, which is in a Phase 1 clinical trial in pediatric patients with relapsed or refractory ALL; AUTO4, a programmed T cell investigational therapy for the treatment of peripheral T-cell lymphoma targeting TRBC1 and TRBC2; AUTO6NG, a programmed T cell investigational therapy targeting GD2 in development for the treatment of neuroblastoma; and AUTO8, a product candidate to treat multiple myeloma.

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