Candel Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CADL) Stock Price Down 4.6% After Earnings Miss

Key Points

• Candel Therapeutics shares fell 4.6% after the company reported a quarterly loss of $0.52 per share, missing the $0.27 consensus estimate by $0.25.
• Management said it is making meaningful progress toward a potential biologics license application submission in the fourth quarter, with a first commercial product targeted for 2027.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive: HC Wainwright maintained a Buy rating and $23 price target, while the 10-analyst consensus is “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $18.57.

Shares of Candel Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CADL - Get Free Report) were down 4.6% on Friday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as low as $11.04 and last traded at $11.2560. Approximately 300,318 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 1,519,494 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.80.

The company reported ($0.52) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.27) by ($0.25).

Key Stories Impacting Candel Therapeutics

Here are the key news stories impacting Candel Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted “meaningful execution” toward a BLA submission expected in the fourth quarter, reinforcing the company’s near-term regulatory and development milestones. Candel is also targeting a potential first commercial product in 2027, which could support a significant change in its long-term revenue outlook. CADL rises as biotech eyes first commercial product in 2027
• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright reaffirmed its Buy rating and $23 price target, implying substantial upside from recent trading levels. The continued bullish rating indicates the analyst sees value in Candel’s pipeline and upcoming regulatory milestones. HC Wainwright reaffirms Candel Therapeutics rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Candel reported second-quarter 2026 results and provided a corporate update. As a clinical-stage biotechnology company, its valuation remains driven primarily by development, regulatory and commercialization progress rather than current revenue. Candel Therapeutics reports second-quarter 2026 results
• Negative Sentiment: Candel reported a quarterly loss of $0.52 per share, significantly worse than the $0.27 analyst consensus. The earnings miss highlights continued cash-burn and execution risk ahead of a potential product launch.
• Negative Sentiment: HC Wainwright modestly reduced its FY2028 EPS forecast to $0.69 from $0.71 and its FY2029 estimate to $1.41 from $1.45. Although the analyst maintained a Buy rating and $23 target, the lower estimates temper some of the long-term optimism.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Candel Therapeutics in a report on Friday, July 17th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Candel Therapeutics in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Candel Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Candel Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $22.00 price target for the company. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Candel Therapeutics from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $18.57.

Insider Activity at Candel Therapeutics

In other news, CTO Seshu Tyagarajan sold 7,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.02, for a total value of $70,140.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 83,865 shares of the company's stock, valued at $840,327.30. The trade was a 7.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Francesca Barone sold 23,447 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.06, for a total value of $235,876.82. Following the sale, the insider owned 77,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $778,261.72. This trade represents a 23.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 14.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Candel Therapeutics

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CADL. Janus Henderson Group PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Candel Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at $845,000. Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. lifted its position in Candel Therapeutics by 20.9% during the 1st quarter. Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. now owns 904,051 shares of the company's stock worth $4,430,000 after buying an additional 155,996 shares in the last quarter. Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new position in Candel Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth about $419,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Candel Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth about $63,000. Finally, AlphaCentric Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Candel Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth about $178,000. Institutional investors own 13.93% of the company's stock.

Candel Therapeutics Stock Down 3.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 28.05 and a current ratio of 28.05. The stock has a market cap of $832.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.58 and a beta of -0.51. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $9.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $7.37.

About Candel Therapeutics

Candel Therapeutics NASDAQ: CADL is a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company focused on the development of next-generation oncolytic viral therapies designed to treat solid tumors. The company's lead candidate, CAN-2409, is a locally administered, gene-delivered viral therapy engineered to selectively replicate in cancer cells and induce immunogenic cell death. Candel leverages proprietary virus engineering platforms to enhance tumor-specific replication and stimulate anti-tumor immune responses, aiming to improve outcomes for patients with high unmet medical needs.

In addition to its lead program, Candel's pipeline includes CAN-3110, an oncolytic herpes simplex virus targeting recurrent high-grade glioma, and other novel viral constructs being explored for a variety of solid tumor indications.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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