Centessa Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CNTA) Hits New 12-Month High - What's Next?

Key Points

• Centessa Pharmaceuticals hit a new 52-week high of $24.57 during trading, with analysts maintaining a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $32.38.
• The company's earnings report showed a loss of ($0.38) per share, which was below the consensus estimate of ($0.35).
• Insider trading activities included significant sales by General Counsel Iqbal J. Hussain and CTO Tia L. Bush, indicating potential concerns about stock ownership among executives.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals PLC Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:CNTA - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $24.57 and last traded at $24.25, with a volume of 1417723 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.40.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNTA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Lifesci Capital raised shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, July 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Chardan Capital restated a "buy" rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $31.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and nine have issued a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Centessa Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $32.38.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.6%

The firm has a market cap of $3.25 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.55 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 10.11 and a quick ratio of 10.12. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $18.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.19.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CNTA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 12th. The company reported ($0.38) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.03). As a group, research analysts forecast that Centessa Pharmaceuticals PLC Sponsored ADR will post -1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centessa Pharmaceuticals

In other Centessa Pharmaceuticals news, General Counsel Iqbal J. Hussain sold 6,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.85, for a total value of $131,100.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 105,386 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,684.10. The trade was a 5.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CTO Tia L. Bush sold 35,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.00, for a total transaction of $840,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 121,503 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,916,072. This trade represents a 22.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 205,286 shares of company stock worth $3,993,345. 7.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centessa Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNTA. Ameriprise Financial Inc. bought a new position in Centessa Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $320,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 33.2% during the fourth quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 26,806 shares of the company's stock valued at $449,000 after purchasing an additional 6,685 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 14.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 115,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,928,000 after purchasing an additional 14,494 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 1,509.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 61,762 shares of the company's stock valued at $888,000 after purchasing an additional 57,925 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighMark Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 41.9% in the first quarter. HighMark Wealth Management LLC now owns 235,785 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,391,000 after acquiring an additional 69,650 shares in the last quarter. 82.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and delivers medicines for patients. Its products pipeline includes SerpinPC, an activated protein C inhibitor for the treatment of hemophilia A and B; and ORX750, an orally administered OX2R agonist for the treatment of narcolepsy and other sleep disorders.

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