Emergent Biosolutions (NYSE:EBS) Stock Price Up 5.3% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Emergent Biosolutions' stock price has increased by 5.3% to $9.62, despite a substantial decline in trading volume.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on the stock, with Weiss Ratings maintaining a "sell (d)" rating, while HC Wainwright has a "buy" rating with a target of $15.00.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings showed $0.16 earnings per share, significantly outperforming analysts' expectations of ($0.26), although revenue fell short of estimates at $140.90 million.

Emergent Biosolutions Inc. (NYSE:EBS - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 5.3% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $9.50 and last traded at $9.62. Approximately 165,695 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 1,200,878 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.14.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Emergent Biosolutions in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $15.00 price target on shares of Emergent Biosolutions in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Emergent Biosolutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Emergent Biosolutions presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $13.50.

Emergent Biosolutions Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $8.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $6.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 5.66 and a quick ratio of 3.00. The firm has a market cap of $516.43 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 2.04.

Emergent Biosolutions (NYSE:EBS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.26) by $0.42. Emergent Biosolutions had a return on equity of 24.63% and a net margin of 16.38%.The firm had revenue of $140.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $148.55 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Emergent Biosolutions Inc. will post -0.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Emergent Biosolutions

In other Emergent Biosolutions news, Director Donald W. Degolyer sold 7,844 shares of Emergent Biosolutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.65, for a total value of $67,850.60. Following the sale, the director owned 137,659 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,190,750.35. The trade was a 5.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Kathryn C. Zoon sold 7,086 shares of Emergent Biosolutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.87, for a total value of $62,852.82. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 71,799 shares in the company, valued at $636,857.13. This represents a 8.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Emergent Biosolutions

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EBS. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Emergent Biosolutions in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Emergent Biosolutions in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Emergent Biosolutions in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $53,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Emergent Biosolutions by 95.1% during the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 12,951 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 6,313 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Emergent Biosolutions during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $68,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.40% of the company's stock.

About Emergent Biosolutions

Emergent BioSolutions Inc, a life sciences company, provides preparedness and response solutions for accidental, deliberate, and naturally occurring public health threats in the United States. The company offers NARCAN Nasal Spray for the emergency treatment of known or suspected opioid overdose; Vaxchora vaccine for the prevention of cholera; Vivotif vaccine for oral administration for the prevention of typhoid fever; Anthrasil for the treatment of inhalational anthrax; BioThrax, an anthrax vaccine; CYFENDUS for post-exposure prophylaxis of disease following suspected or confirmed exposure to Bacillus anthracis; and Raxibacumab injection for the treatment and prophylaxis of inhalational anthrax.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.