Canaccord Genuity Group Upgrades Atara Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ATRA) to "Strong-Buy"

Key Points

• Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Atara Biotherapeutics from “hold” to “strong-buy”, adding to mixed analyst coverage that currently includes a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $9.50 average price target.
• Atara recently reported quarterly earnings that beat expectations, posting an EPS loss of $0.25 versus the expected $0.68 loss and revenue of $1.6 million versus $0.7 million estimated.
• Investor focus is also on Atara’s FDA discussions for tabelecleucel, which appear to keep the regulatory resubmission path open and have helped offset concerns around the lead cell-therapy program.

Atara Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ATRA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Canaccord Genuity Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Friday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on ATRA. New Street Research set a $6.00 price target on Atara Biotherapeutics in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Wall Street Zen cut Atara Biotherapeutics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a report on Friday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $9.50.

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Atara Biotherapeutics Stock Performance

ATRA opened at $8.34 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.97 million, a P/E ratio of 2.67 and a beta of -0.30. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $5.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $9.32. Atara Biotherapeutics has a 52-week low of $3.92 and a 52-week high of $19.15.

Atara Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ATRA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 16th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.25) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.68) by $0.43. The business had revenue of $1.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $0.70 million. Atara Biotherapeutics had a net margin of 27.07% and a negative return on equity of 79.12%. Research analysts forecast that Atara Biotherapeutics will post 0.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atara Biotherapeutics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATRA. Globeflex Capital L P raised its stake in Atara Biotherapeutics by 399.6% during the 4th quarter. Globeflex Capital L P now owns 77,224 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,397,000 after acquiring an additional 61,766 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Atara Biotherapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $327,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in Atara Biotherapeutics by 183.5% during the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 63,816 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $914,000 after acquiring an additional 41,302 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Atara Biotherapeutics by 133.5% during the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 32,691 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $591,000 after acquiring an additional 18,691 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Atara Biotherapeutics by 6.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 203,438 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,915,000 after acquiring an additional 12,677 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.90% of the company's stock.

Atara Biotherapeutics News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Atara Biotherapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Atara said its FDA discussions on tabelecleucel keep the resubmission/regulatory pathway open, easing fears that the therapy had been permanently derailed. Atara Biotherapeutics Provides Regulatory Update on Tabelecleucel
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary highlighted that ATRA surged after the FDA meeting, indicating investors viewed the update as better-than-feared for the company’s lead cell-therapy program. Atara surges after FDA meeting on cell therapy
• Neutral Sentiment: Several law firms issued notices and deadline reminders about a securities class action tied to purchases between May 20, 2024 and January 9, 2026; these updates add uncertainty but are largely procedural at this stage. ATRA Investors Have Opportunity to Lead Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. Securities Fraud Lawsuit with the Schall Law Firm
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional class-action notices from Gross, Rosen, Faruqi, Bronstein, and Pomerantz reinforce the legal backdrop, but they do not appear to be the primary driver of the day’s move versus the FDA update. Pomerantz Law Firm Announces the Filing of a Class Action Against Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. and Certain Officers - ATRA
• Negative Sentiment: The ongoing securities-fraud lawsuit and repeated lead-plaintiff reminders signal potential legal costs and reputational risk for Atara Biotherapeutics. ROSEN, A LEADING INVESTOR RIGHTS LAW FIRM, Encourages Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. Investors to Secure Counsel Before Important Deadline in Securities Class Action - ATRA

About Atara Biotherapeutics

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel T-cell immunotherapies to transform the treatment of cancer and autoimmune disease. Headquartered in South San Francisco, California, Atara leverages its proprietary off-the-shelf allogeneic Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-directed T-cell platform to generate engineered cell therapies designed to target EBV-driven malignancies and immune-mediated disorders.

The company's lead product candidate, tabelecleucel, is an off-the-shelf, EBV-specific T-cell therapy in clinical development for the treatment of EBV-positive post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease (PTLD) and other EBV-associated cancers.

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