Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $RCKT Stock Holdings Lifted by Synovus Financial Corp

Key Points

• Synovus Financial Corp increased its stake in Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 69.9% in Q1, owning approximately 278,450 shares worth about $1.86 million.
• Insider Jonathan David Schwartz sold 11,161 shares for $33,706, leading to a 4.74% decrease in ownership, while total insider sales in the last ninety days amounted to 36,927 shares.
• Rocket Pharmaceuticals reported a quarterly earnings loss of ($0.59) EPS, which missed analysts' expectations, while the company currently holds a market cap of $365.78 million.

Synovus Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RCKT - Free Report) by 69.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 278,450 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 114,557 shares during the quarter. Synovus Financial Corp owned 0.26% of Rocket Pharmaceuticals worth $1,857,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 63,637 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $800,000 after buying an additional 3,344 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its position in Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 88.6% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 41,142 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $517,000 after purchasing an additional 19,326 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 8.4% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 107,638 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $718,000 after buying an additional 8,299 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $285,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 14.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 663,152 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $8,336,000 after buying an additional 82,316 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.39% of the company's stock.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $0.07 on Friday, reaching $3.28. 2,288,954 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,974,289. Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2.19 and a 1-year high of $22.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 6.39 and a current ratio of 6.39. The company's 50-day moving average is $3.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.38. The firm has a market cap of $353.93 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.31 and a beta of 0.65.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RCKT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.59) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.57) by ($0.02). During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.74) EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -2.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Leerink Partnrs lowered Rocket Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Leerink Partners reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $8.00 price objective (down previously from $37.00) on shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on Rocket Pharmaceuticals from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Rocket Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $16.73.

Insider Activity

In other Rocket Pharmaceuticals news, insider Jonathan David Schwartz sold 11,161 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.02, for a total transaction of $33,706.22. Following the transaction, the insider owned 224,094 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $676,763.88. This trade represents a 4.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Martin Wilson sold 12,109 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.02, for a total transaction of $36,569.18. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 137,054 shares in the company, valued at $413,903.08. This represents a 8.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 36,927 shares of company stock valued at $111,413. Company insiders own 24.76% of the company's stock.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals Profile

Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a late-stage biotechnology company that focuses on developing gene therapies for rare and devastating diseases. It has three clinical-stage ex vivo lentiviral vector programs for fanconi anemia, a genetic defect in the bone marrow that reduces production of blood cells or promotes the production of faulty blood cells; leukocyte adhesion deficiency-I, a genetic disorder that causes the immune system to malfunction; and pyruvate kinase deficiency, a rare red blood cell autosomal recessive disorder that results in chronic non-spherocytic hemolytic anemia.