Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys New Stake in Zymeworks Inc. $ZYME

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group acquired 78,547 Zymeworks shares worth approximately $1.97 million, representing about 0.11% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 92.89% of Zymeworks.
• Zymeworks reported a quarterly loss of $0.59 per share on $2.41 million in revenue, with a negative net margin of 126.92%. The company also authorized a $125 million share-repurchase program covering up to 7% of outstanding shares.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $37.33, although ratings range from Strong Buy to Sell. Shares opened at $22.71 and have traded between $11.51 and $29.75 over the past year.

Principal Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Zymeworks Inc. (NASDAQ:ZYME - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 78,547 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,967,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.11% of Zymeworks as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Zymeworks in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Zymeworks during the third quarter valued at $50,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in Zymeworks by 29.6% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,947 shares of the company's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 1,131 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in Zymeworks by 25.2% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 3,637 shares of the company's stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 731 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Zymeworks by 157.7% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 10,307 shares of the company's stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 6,307 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.89% of the company's stock.

Zymeworks Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:ZYME opened at $22.71 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.58 and a beta of 1.13. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $24.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.50. Zymeworks Inc. has a 12-month low of $11.51 and a 12-month high of $29.75.

Zymeworks (NASDAQ:ZYME - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported ($0.59) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Zymeworks had a negative return on equity of 37.97% and a negative net margin of 126.92%.The company had revenue of $2.41 million during the quarter. As a group, research analysts forecast that Zymeworks Inc. will post 1.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zymeworks announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 14th that permits the company to buyback $125.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ZYME shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Zymeworks from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Zymeworks in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Zymeworks in a report on Friday, July 17th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $46.00 price objective on shares of Zymeworks in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Zymeworks from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $37.33.

About Zymeworks

Zymeworks Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of next-generation multifunctional biotherapeutics. The company specializes in engineered antibody and protein therapeutics designed to address a range of unmet medical needs in oncology and other serious diseases. Through its proprietary platforms, Zymeworks aims to create novel bispecific and multispecific molecules that can simultaneously engage multiple targets and recruit immune effector functions to enhance potency and specificity.

At the core of Zymeworks' innovation is its Azymetric™ bispecific antibody platform, which enables the design of asymmetrical bispecific antibodies with controlled assembly and high stability.

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