Castle Biosciences, Inc. (CSTL) - What Are Analysts Saying About This Stock?

Key Points

• Analysts broadly favor Castle Biosciences: Eleven brokerages give the stock a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with eight buys, one strong buy, one hold and one sell. The average 12-month price target is $44.25, while Mizuho set the highest cited target at $60.
• Institutional ownership is substantial: Institutional investors own 92.6% of the company, with BlackRock and several other firms establishing significant positions during the second quarter.
• Insiders have been selling shares: Company insiders sold 129,759 shares worth approximately $4.43 million over the past three months, though the transactions were made under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plans. CSTL recently traded at $34.94, near its 50-day average of $34.23 and below its 52-week high of $44.28.

Shares of Castle Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSTL - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $44.25.

Several brokerages recently commented on CSTL. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Castle Biosciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Castle Biosciences in a research note on Thursday. Mizuho assumed coverage on Castle Biosciences in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird set a $36.00 target price on Castle Biosciences in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, BTIG Research increased their target price on Castle Biosciences from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd.

Insider Transactions at Castle Biosciences

In other news, insider Derek J. Maetzold sold 12,428 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.20, for a total value of $412,609.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 21,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $713,102.80. This represents a 36.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Tobin Juvenal sold 9,050 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.04, for a total value of $317,112.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 66,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,344,666.56. This represents a 11.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 129,759 shares of company stock worth $4,434,187 over the last three months. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Castle Biosciences

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Castle Biosciences during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $78,513,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Castle Biosciences in the second quarter valued at $15,440,000. AIGH Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Castle Biosciences in the second quarter valued at $13,001,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Castle Biosciences in the second quarter worth $7,912,000. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Castle Biosciences in the second quarter worth $5,681,000. 92.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Castle Biosciences Price Performance

NASDAQ CSTL opened at $34.94 on Tuesday. Castle Biosciences has a 1 year low of $17.72 and a 1 year high of $44.28. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $34.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.65. The company has a current ratio of 6.04, a quick ratio of 5.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The company has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a P/E ratio of -52.94 and a beta of 0.94.

About Castle Biosciences

Castle Biosciences, Inc is a molecular diagnostics company that develops and commercializes tests designed to help physicians diagnose cancer, assess disease risk and guide treatment decisions. The company focuses on conditions in which additional biological information can complement traditional pathology and clinical assessment.

Its portfolio includes DecisionDx-Melanoma, which helps evaluate the risk of metastatic recurrence in patients with cutaneous melanoma; DecisionDx-SCC, which assesses metastatic risk in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma; and DecisionDx-UM, a test for determining metastatic risk in uveal melanoma.

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