Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 257,900 Shares of Agenus Inc. $AGEN

Key Points

• Renaissance Technologies cut its Agenus stake by 47.4% in the first quarter, selling 257,900 shares and retaining 285,646 shares worth approximately $954,000. Institutional investors collectively own 61.46% of Agenus.
• Analyst opinions remain mixed: Agenus has an overall “Hold” rating and a $19.50 average price target, with recent targets ranging from $14 to $25.
• Agenus shares opened at $7.32, near the upper end of their $2.71–$8.85 52-week range. The company reported quarterly revenue of $34.52 million but missed earnings expectations, posting a loss of $0.01 per share versus the anticipated $0.05 profit.

Renaissance Technologies LLC lowered its position in Agenus Inc. (NASDAQ:AGEN - Free Report) by 47.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 285,646 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 257,900 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 0.69% of Agenus worth $954,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Agenus during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Agenus in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Redwood Family Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Agenus in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new position in Agenus during the fourth quarter worth about $54,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in Agenus during the third quarter worth about $54,000. Institutional investors own 61.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AGEN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Zacks Research lowered Agenus from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. B. Riley Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $14.00 target price (up from $8.00) on shares of Agenus in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Agenus from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Agenus from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, August 9th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $25.00 price target (down from $30.00) on shares of Agenus in a research note on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $19.50.

Agenus Stock Performance

Shares of AGEN opened at $7.32 on Friday. Agenus Inc. has a 52 week low of $2.71 and a 52 week high of $8.85. The firm has a market cap of $329.55 million, a P/E ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.41. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $4.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.94.

Agenus (NASDAQ:AGEN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $34.52 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.00 million. Agenus had a net margin of 69.33% and a negative return on equity of 47.68%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Agenus Inc. will post -0.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Agenus Company Profile

Agenus, Inc NASDAQ: AGEN is a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company headquartered in Lexington, Massachusetts. The company focuses on the discovery and development of therapies designed to modulate the immune system's response to cancer. Leveraging proprietary platforms in checkpoint modulation, vaccine technology and adjuvant systems, Agenus aims to deliver combination regimens that enhance antitumor activity across a variety of solid tumors and hematological malignancies.

Agenus' pipeline includes monoclonal antibodies targeting immune checkpoints, cytokine-based therapeutics and vaccine candidates built on its engineered heat shock protein (HSP) platform.

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