HC Wainwright Lifts Earnings Estimates for Aura Biosciences

Key Points

• HC Wainwright raised its Q1 2026 EPS estimate for Aura to ($0.38) from ($0.44), kept a Buy rating with a $22 price target, and now projects FY2026 EPS of ($1.59) versus the consensus ($1.66).
• Aura reported Q1 EPS of ($0.37), beating the consensus ($0.43) by $0.06, while the stock trades around $6.66 with a market cap near $427 million.
• Insiders have sold material stakes recently (123,076 shares worth ~$618,783 in the last 90 days) even as institutional investors hold about 96.75% of the company's stock.

Aura Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:AURA - Free Report) - Equities researchers at HC Wainwright increased their Q1 2026 earnings estimates for Aura Biosciences in a research report issued on Monday, March 30th. HC Wainwright analyst A. Maldonado now expects that the company will earn ($0.38) per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of ($0.44). HC Wainwright has a "Buy" rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for Aura Biosciences' current full-year earnings is ($1.66) per share. HC Wainwright also issued estimates for Aura Biosciences' Q2 2026 earnings at ($0.39) EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at ($0.40) EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at ($0.41) EPS, FY2026 earnings at ($1.59) EPS, FY2027 earnings at ($1.56) EPS, FY2028 earnings at ($1.36) EPS and FY2029 earnings at ($1.02) EPS.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on AURA. Wall Street Zen raised Aura Biosciences from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Aura Biosciences in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Aura Biosciences has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $20.50.

Aura Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of AURA traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $6.66. The stock had a trading volume of 248,756 shares, compared to its average volume of 235,328. The firm has a market cap of $427.17 million, a P/E ratio of -3.71 and a beta of 0.35. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $5.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.87. Aura Biosciences has a 12-month low of $4.34 and a 12-month high of $7.48.

Aura Biosciences (NASDAQ:AURA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 30th. The company reported ($0.37) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.43) by $0.06.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aura Biosciences

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in shares of Aura Biosciences by 49.3% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,372 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 2,104 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aura Biosciences in the fourth quarter worth about $59,000. Water Island Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aura Biosciences in the third quarter worth about $64,000. 49 Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aura Biosciences in the third quarter worth about $66,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Aura Biosciences in the second quarter worth about $76,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.75% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Aura Biosciences news, insider Janet Jill Hopkins sold 20,401 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.06, for a total transaction of $103,229.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 232,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,175,357.04. The trade was a 8.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CTO Mark Plavsic sold 15,890 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.05, for a total value of $80,244.50. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 181,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $916,054.85. This trade represents a 8.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 123,076 shares of company stock valued at $618,783 in the last 90 days. 6.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Aura Biosciences

Aura Biosciences is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel virus‐like particle (VLP) therapies for the treatment of cancer. By combining proprietary VLP technology with photoactivatable dyes, Aura aims to deliver highly selective photodynamic therapies that target and destroy tumor cells while sparing healthy tissue. The company's platform is designed to address solid tumors in both ophthalmic and non‐ophthalmic settings, leveraging precision activation via near‐infrared light to induce localized tumor cell apoptosis and stimulate anti‐tumor immune responses.

The lead product candidate, AU-011, is being evaluated in patients with choroidal melanoma, a rare but potentially sight-threatening eye cancer.

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