Deutsche Bank AG Sells 2,504,393 Shares of Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. $PLRX

Key Points

• Deutsche Bank AG significantly reduced its stake in Pliant Therapeutics by 98.1%, ending with approximately 0.08% ownership, which reflects a total of $64,000 value held.
• In contrast, several hedge funds notably increased their positions in Pliant, with Aquatic Capital Management boosting its stake by 1,299.0% during the fourth quarter.
• Equities research analysts have downgraded the price target for Pliant Therapeutics from $17.00 to $4.00, and the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" with a target price of $8.19.

Deutsche Bank AG decreased its stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX - Free Report) by 98.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 47,472 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,504,393 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG owned 0.08% of Pliant Therapeutics worth $64,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Paradigm Biocapital Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Paradigm Biocapital Advisors LP now owns 3,197,050 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,105,000 after acquiring an additional 92,564 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at about $14,761,000. Peapod Lane Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at about $867,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 555,600 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,317,000 after acquiring an additional 53,584 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 547,297 shares of the company's stock worth $7,206,000 after buying an additional 91,131 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Pliant Therapeutics from $17.00 to $4.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 8th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a report on Sunday, August 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $8.19.

Pliant Therapeutics Stock Performance

PLRX stock traded up $0.23 on Friday, reaching $1.86. 3,425,075 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 865,742. Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $1.10 and a 12 month high of $16.10. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $1.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $1.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $114.19 million, a PE ratio of -0.55 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 12.99 and a quick ratio of 12.99.

Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.71) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.62) by ($0.09). On average, research analysts anticipate that Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pliant Therapeutics Company Profile

Pliant Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes novel therapies for the treatment of fibrosis and related diseases in the United States. The company's lead candidate is bexotegrast, an oral, small-molecule, dual selective inhibitor of avß6 and avß1 integrins, which is in phase 2b trials for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and in phase 2a trial for primary sclerosing cholangitis.