Precigen, Inc. $PGEN Stock Sold by Iridian Asset Management LLC CT

Key Points

• Iridian Asset Management cut its Precigen stake by 24% in the third quarter, selling 967,392 shares and retaining 3.06 million shares valued at approximately $26.2 million. Precigen remains the firm’s second-largest holding and represents 9.4% of its portfolio.
• Precigen reported quarterly revenue of $54.98 million, up 6,322.7% year over year and well above analyst expectations, while earnings per share of $0.05 beat consensus estimates. The company remains unprofitable, with a negative net margin.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $13.67 versus the reported share price of $6.19. Company insiders also sold 401,511 shares worth $2.8 million during the latest quarter.

Iridian Asset Management LLC CT lowered its stake in Precigen, Inc. (NASDAQ:PGEN - Free Report) by 24.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,064,571 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 967,392 shares during the quarter. Precigen makes up 9.4% of Iridian Asset Management LLC CT's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Iridian Asset Management LLC CT owned about 0.86% of Precigen worth $26,233,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Precigen during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Precigen by 102.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,714 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 5,426 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Precigen in the first quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Precigen during the first quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in Precigen during the third quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Institutional investors own 33.51% of the company's stock.

Precigen Price Performance

Shares of PGEN stock opened at $6.19 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $7.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.72. The company has a quick ratio of 3.89, a current ratio of 4.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.15. The firm has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.95 and a beta of 0.92. Precigen, Inc. has a 12 month low of $3.04 and a 12 month high of $8.98.

Precigen (NASDAQ:PGEN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The biotechnology company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.06. Precigen had a positive return on equity of 423.75% and a negative net margin of 183.98%. The firm had revenue of $54.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $27.98 million. Precigen's quarterly revenue was up 6322.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Precigen, Inc. will post 0.24 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on PGEN shares. HC Wainwright increased their target price on Precigen from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Zacks Research cut Precigen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Precigen in a report on Thursday, October 15th. B. Riley Financial initiated coverage on shares of Precigen in a research report on Friday, September 25th. They set a "buy" rating and a $12.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Precigen from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Precigen presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $13.67.

Insider Transactions at Precigen

In related news, CFO Harry Thomasian, Jr. sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.06, for a total value of $606,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 254,535 shares in the company, valued at $1,542,482.10. This represents a 28.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Jeffrey B. Kindler sold 185,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.44, for a total transaction of $1,376,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 17,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $127,224. The trade was a 91.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 401,511 shares of company stock worth $2,801,508 in the last quarter. 41.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Precigen

Precigen, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing gene and cell therapies for cancer and serious diseases. The company uses its proprietary UltraCAR-T, AdenoVerse, and other gene-engineering platforms to design potential treatments intended to improve the targeting, persistence, and manufacturing of therapeutic cells and genetic medicines.

Precigen's pipeline has included PRGN-2012, an investigational immunotherapy based on a gorilla adenovector for recurrent respiratory papillomatosis, as well as PRGN-2001, an investigational HPV-targeted immunotherapy.

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