Celcuity (NASDAQ:CELC) Shares Down 5.5% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Celcuity's share price dropped 5.5% to $52.00, with trading volume falling significantly to 152,250 shares, down 75% from the average.
• Despite recent analyst downgrades, Celcuity maintains an average rating of "Buy" with a consensus price target of $56.50.
• Celcuity reported a quarterly loss of $1.04 EPS, missing estimates, while analysts project an annual EPS of -2.62 for the fiscal year.

Celcuity, Inc. (NASDAQ:CELC - Get Free Report)'s stock price fell 5.5% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $52.25 and last traded at $52.00. 152,250 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 616,091 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.03.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on CELC. Leerink Partners raised their price objective on Celcuity from $28.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. HC Wainwright lifted their price target on Celcuity from $50.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on Celcuity from $74.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on Celcuity in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $30.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Guggenheim started coverage on Celcuity in a report on Monday. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Celcuity has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $56.50.

Celcuity Stock Performance

The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $43.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 4.58 and a current ratio of 4.58.

Celcuity (NASDAQ:CELC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The company reported ($1.04) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.90) by ($0.14). On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Celcuity, Inc. will post -2.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Celcuity news, Director David Dalvey sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.98, for a total transaction of $4,398,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 125,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,497,500. This represents a 44.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 15.78% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Celcuity

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CELC. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Celcuity by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 288,259 shares of the company's stock worth $3,773,000 after buying an additional 10,907 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in Celcuity by 67.1% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 22,842 shares of the company's stock valued at $299,000 after acquiring an additional 9,174 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in Celcuity by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,725 shares of the company's stock valued at $258,000 after acquiring an additional 2,756 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Celcuity by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 69,587 shares of the company's stock valued at $911,000 after acquiring an additional 6,785 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Celcuity by 19.7% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 26,377 shares of the company's stock valued at $345,000 after acquiring an additional 4,341 shares during the period. 63.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Celcuity

Celcuity Inc, a clinical stage biotechnology company, focuses on the development of targeted therapies for the treatment of various solid tumors in the United States. The company's CELsignia diagnostic platform uses a patient's living tumor cells to identify the specific abnormal cellular process driving a patient's cancer and the related targeted therapy for the treatment.