Belite Bio (NASDAQ:BLTE) Shares Down 5.1% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Shares down 5.1%: Belite Bio fell to about $160.22 on Thursday (intraday low $162.76) on very light volume — 10,066 shares traded, roughly 95% below its average session volume.
• Analyst backdrop: The consensus is a “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $202.33 and several bullish targets (Mizuho $223, Needham $217, Morgan Stanley $201).
• Insider selling noted: CEO Yu‑Hsin Lin sold 9,200 shares at ~ $181.45 on April 9; insiders sold 16,500 shares (~$2.99M) in the last quarter while institutional ownership remains very low (~0.53%).

Belite Bio, Inc. Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:BLTE - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 5.1% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $162.76 and last traded at $160.2150. 10,066 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 95% from the average session volume of 199,443 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.76.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Belite Bio in a research report on Monday. Mizuho set a $223.00 price objective on Belite Bio in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Belite Bio from $191.00 to $201.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating on shares of Belite Bio in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC set a $217.00 price objective on Belite Bio in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Belite Bio currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $202.33.

Belite Bio Stock Performance

The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $171.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $144.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.47 billion, a PE ratio of -70.40 and a beta of -1.22.

Belite Bio (NASDAQ:BLTE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported ($0.38) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.56) by $0.18. Equities research analysts expect that Belite Bio, Inc. Sponsored ADR will post -1.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Belite Bio

In other Belite Bio news, CEO Yu-Hsin Lin sold 9,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.45, for a total value of $1,669,340.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 170,934 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,015,974.30. This trade represents a 5.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Wan-Shan Chen sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.43, for a total value of $198,473.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 9,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,641,191.28. The trade was a 10.79% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 16,500 shares of company stock valued at $2,993,113 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 13.29% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BLTE. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in shares of Belite Bio by 28,200.0% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 283 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Belite Bio by 28.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,171 shares of the company's stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Belite Bio in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $103,000. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Belite Bio in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $108,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Belite Bio by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 0.53% of the company's stock.

About Belite Bio

Belite Bio, Inc NASDAQ: BLTE is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing small molecule therapeutics for metabolic and inflammatory diseases. Leveraging a proprietary drug-discovery platform, the company aims to address conditions such as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and obesity by targeting pathways involved in fibrosis, inflammation and metabolic regulation.

Belite Bio’s pipeline includes multiple candidates in preclinical and early clinical development stages.

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