BVF Inc. IL Boosts Stock Position in Kura Oncology, Inc. $KURA

Key Points

• BVF Inc. IL has significantly increased its holdings in Kura Oncology by 202.0% during the first quarter, now owning approximately 8.96% of the company's stock, valued at $51.2 million.
• Kura Oncology recently reported a quarterly loss of ($0.75) EPS, which fell short of the consensus estimate of $0.15, with revenues of just $15.29 million versus the expected $64.95 million.
• Current analyst ratings for Kura Oncology indicate a Moderate Buy stance, with an average price target of $24.10, reflecting optimism among most analysts despite recent earnings misses.

BVF Inc. IL boosted its holdings in Kura Oncology, Inc. (NASDAQ:KURA - Free Report) by 202.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,754,129 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,186,660 shares during the quarter. Kura Oncology comprises approximately 2.1% of BVF Inc. IL's portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. BVF Inc. IL owned approximately 8.96% of Kura Oncology worth $51,177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Kura Oncology by 407.8% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 760,332 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,018,000 after purchasing an additional 610,604 shares in the last quarter. ADAR1 Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Kura Oncology in the first quarter valued at approximately $165,000. Graham Capital Management L.P. lifted its stake in Kura Oncology by 242.6% in the first quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 174,559 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,152,000 after buying an additional 123,610 shares during the last quarter. Armistice Capital LLC lifted its stake in Kura Oncology by 13.3% in the first quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 6,572,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,375,000 after buying an additional 772,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DAFNA Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Kura Oncology by 3.3% in the first quarter. DAFNA Capital Management LLC now owns 463,368 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,058,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KURA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Kura Oncology from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 17th. JMP Securities cut their price target on Kura Oncology from $28.00 to $24.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Guggenheim initiated coverage on Kura Oncology in a research note on Thursday. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $36.00 price target on shares of Kura Oncology in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Kura Oncology in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $24.10.

Kura Oncology Trading Down 0.4%

NASDAQ:KURA traded down $0.04 on Monday, reaching $8.19. The stock had a trading volume of 958,853 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,462,056. The company has a market cap of $710.46 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.61 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 6.16 and a quick ratio of 6.16. The firm's fifty day moving average is $6.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $6.56. Kura Oncology, Inc. has a 12-month low of $5.41 and a 12-month high of $21.40.

Kura Oncology (NASDAQ:KURA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.75) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.90). The business had revenue of $15.29 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $64.95 million. Equities analysts expect that Kura Oncology, Inc. will post -2.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kura Oncology Company Profile

Kura Oncology, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, develops medicines for the treatment of cancer. The company's pipeline consists of small molecule product candidates that target cancer. Its lead product candidates are ziftomenib, an orally bioavailable small molecule inhibitor of the menin-KMT2A interaction for the treatment of genetically defined subsets of acute leukemias, including acute myeloid leukemia and acute lymphoblastic leukemia; tipifarnib, an orally bioavailable farnesyl transferase inhibitor combination with alpelisib for patients with PIK3CA-dependent HNSCC; and KO-2806, a farnesyl transferase inhibitor for the treatment of solid tumors.