Agenus Inc. (NASDAQ:AGEN) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Agenus has an average “Hold” rating from five analysts, with three buys, one hold and one sell; the average 12-month price target is $26.33.
• Recent analyst actions were mixed: Chardan initiated coverage with a $40 buy target, while HC Wainwright lowered its target to $25 and Weiss Ratings and Wall Street Zen downgraded their views.
• Institutional investors own 61.46% of Agenus, while the stock recently traded at $7.22. The company missed quarterly EPS estimates, reporting a $0.01 loss per share versus expectations for $0.05 in earnings.

Shares of Agenus Inc. (NASDAQ:AGEN - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Hold" from the five analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $26.3333.

Several research analysts have issued reports on AGEN shares. Weiss Ratings cut Agenus from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $25.00 price objective (down from $30.00) on shares of Agenus in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Chardan Capital initiated coverage on Agenus in a research report on Friday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $40.00 price objective on the stock. B. Riley Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $14.00 target price (up from $8.00) on shares of Agenus in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Agenus from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Agenus

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AGEN. Redwood Family Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Agenus during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Ovata Capital Management Ltd purchased a new position in Agenus in the 4th quarter worth $97,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Agenus during the 2nd quarter worth about $311,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Agenus by 796.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 118,782 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $397,000 after purchasing an additional 105,536 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Globeflex Capital L P acquired a new position in shares of Agenus in the second quarter valued at about $1,281,000. Institutional investors own 61.46% of the company's stock.

Agenus Trading Up 0.1%

Agenus stock opened at $7.22 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $6.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $4.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $326.06 million, a PE ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.38. Agenus has a 12-month low of $2.71 and a 12-month high of $8.85.

Agenus (NASDAQ:AGEN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $34.52 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.00 million. Agenus had a net margin of 69.33% and a negative return on equity of 47.68%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Agenus will post -0.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agenus Company Profile

Agenus Inc NASDAQ: AGEN is a biotechnology company focused on developing immunotherapies for the treatment of cancer. Its research programs are designed to activate and direct the immune system against tumors, with an emphasis on therapies that may address immune resistance and improve responses in difficult-to-treat cancers.

The company's pipeline has included checkpoint inhibitors, cancer vaccines, immune-stimulating adjuvants, bispecific antibodies and other antibody-based therapies.

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