GRAIL (NASDAQ:GRAL) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Wolfe Research

Key Points

• Wolfe Research initiated coverage on GRAIL with a "peer perform" rating, adding to a mixed Wall Street view that currently includes a consensus Hold rating and an average price target of $67.88.
• Shares of NASDAQ:GRAL fell 17.3% to $59.32 on heavy volume, well below the stock’s 200-day moving average of $76.02 and within a wide 52-week range of $29.95 to $118.84.
• GRAIL recently reported a narrower-than-expected loss, posting EPS of -$2.29 versus the -$2.76 estimate, while revenue of $40.79 million also beat expectations; however, insiders have continued selling shares, including the CEO and CFO.

Research analysts at Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of GRAIL (NASDAQ:GRAL - Get Free Report) in a report released on Tuesday. The brokerage set a "peer perform" rating on the stock.

GRAL has been the subject of several other research reports. Mizuho began coverage on shares of GRAIL in a report on Friday, April 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $58.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of GRAIL from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Guggenheim reduced their target price on shares of GRAIL from $130.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $70.00 target price on shares of GRAIL in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of GRAIL from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $67.88.

GRAIL Stock Down 17.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:GRAL traded down $12.37 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $59.32. 2,610,713 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 651,046. The business's fifty day moving average is $56.25 and its 200-day moving average is $76.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.13 and a beta of 3.15. GRAIL has a one year low of $29.95 and a one year high of $118.84.

GRAIL (NASDAQ:GRAL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($2.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($2.76) by $0.47. The business had revenue of $40.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.16 million. GRAIL had a negative return on equity of 16.42% and a negative net margin of 253.22%. On average, analysts forecast that GRAIL will post -10.99 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at GRAIL

In other news, CEO Robert P. Ragusa sold 123,502 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.92, for a total value of $6,165,219.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 518,582 shares in the company, valued at $25,887,613.44. This trade represents a 19.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Aaron Freidin sold 45,806 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.92, for a total transaction of $2,286,635.52. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 260,669 shares in the company, valued at $13,012,596.48. This represents a 14.95% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 246,188 shares of company stock valued at $12,270,723. Company insiders own 1.83% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GRAIL

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Farallon Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of GRAIL by 73.7% in the fourth quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 2,342,684 shares of the company's stock valued at $200,510,000 after buying an additional 993,684 shares during the period. Baker BROS. Advisors LP grew its holdings in GRAIL by 27.9% during the fourth quarter. Baker BROS. Advisors LP now owns 2,085,333 shares of the company's stock worth $178,484,000 after acquiring an additional 455,208 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in GRAIL by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,980,783 shares of the company's stock worth $169,535,000 after acquiring an additional 163,790 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in GRAIL by 38.8% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,827,523 shares of the company's stock worth $156,418,000 after acquiring an additional 510,546 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in GRAIL by 63.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,511,687 shares of the company's stock valued at $129,385,000 after acquiring an additional 588,647 shares during the last quarter.

GRAIL Company Profile

GRAIL, Inc NASDAQ: GRAL is a biotechnology company dedicated to the early detection of cancer through a multi-cancer blood test. Leveraging advances in next-generation sequencing, cell-free DNA (cfDNA) analysis and machine learning, GRAIL has developed the Galleri™ test, which aims to identify more than 50 types of cancer at their earliest stages. The company's platform analyzes methylation patterns in circulating tumor DNA to pinpoint tumor presence and tissue of origin, enabling physicians to pursue timely diagnostic follow-up.

Founded in 2016 as a spin-out from Illumina, GRAIL established its headquarters in Menlo Park, California, with additional research and operations centers in the United Kingdom.

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