First Trust Advisors LP Acquires 451,124 Shares of BioNTech SE Sponsored ADR $BNTX

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP increased its BioNTech stake by 116% in the first quarter, adding 451,124 shares and bringing its total holding to 839,991 shares valued at about $74.7 million.
• BioNTech reported a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss of ($2.26) per share, but revenue of $136.7 million fell short of analyst estimates and declined 35.4% year over year.
• The company’s board approved a $1 billion share repurchase program covering up to 4.2% of shares outstanding, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $129.12.

First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in BioNTech SE Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:BNTX - Free Report) by 116.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 839,991 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 451,124 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.33% of BioNTech worth $74,658,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in BioNTech by 86.4% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 274 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. EFG International AG bought a new position in shares of BioNTech in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in shares of BioNTech by 520.0% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 310 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in shares of BioNTech by 118.2% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 563 shares of the company's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vestcor Inc bought a new stake in BioNTech during the 4th quarter worth approximately $153,000. Institutional investors own 15.52% of the company's stock.

BioNTech Stock Performance

BioNTech stock opened at $89.33 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 8.80, a quick ratio of 8.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. BioNTech SE Sponsored ADR has a 1 year low of $79.52 and a 1 year high of $124.00. The company has a market cap of $22.59 billion, a PE ratio of -15.19 and a beta of 1.32. The company's 50-day moving average is $91.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.67.

BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The company reported ($2.26) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($2.52) by $0.26. The company had revenue of $136.71 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $207.42 million. BioNTech had a negative net margin of 44.39% and a negative return on equity of 5.30%. BioNTech's revenue was down 35.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($1.73) EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that BioNTech SE Sponsored ADR will post -5.79 earnings per share for the current year.

BioNTech announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Berenberg Bank reduced their price objective on BioNTech from $155.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of BioNTech from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of BioNTech from $126.00 to $119.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of BioNTech in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of BioNTech in a research note on Monday, April 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $129.12.

BioNTech Company Profile

BioNTech SE NASDAQ: BNTX is a Germany-based biotechnology company that develops next-generation immunotherapies and vaccines, with a primary focus on messenger RNA (mRNA) technology. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Mainz, BioNTech advances a platform approach to design and manufacture therapeutics across oncology, infectious diseases and other high unmet-need areas. The company is publicly traded on the NASDAQ exchange and became widely known for its rapid development and global deployment of an mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine in collaboration with Pfizer.

BioNTech's core activities include discovery research, clinical development and manufacturing of mRNA-based medicines, personalized cancer immunotherapies, engineered cell therapies, and antibody- and protein-based therapeutics.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.