Humacyte (NASDAQ:HUMA) Rating Increased to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Humacyte from “strong sell” to “sell,” while broader analyst sentiment remains “Moderate Buy,” with seven Buy ratings and one Sell rating and a consensus price target of $6.25.
• Humacyte shares opened at $0.65, down 2.7%, near their 52-week low of $0.55; the company has a market capitalization of approximately $145 million.
• The company reported a quarterly loss of $0.09 per share, slightly better than estimates, but revenue of $0.49 million fell well short of the $1.46 million consensus forecast. Two insiders also sold shares to cover tax obligations tied to vested equity awards.

Humacyte (NASDAQ:HUMA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on HUMA. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Humacyte in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Humacyte from $1.50 to $1.25 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. HC Wainwright upped their price target on shares of Humacyte from $3.00 to $4.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $2.00 price target on shares of Humacyte in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of Humacyte to $2.00 and gave the stock a "speculative buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $6.25.

Humacyte Stock Down 2.7%

HUMA stock opened at $0.65 on Friday. Humacyte has a 1-year low of $0.55 and a 1-year high of $2.76. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $0.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $0.93. The company has a current ratio of 3.93, a quick ratio of 3.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $145.07 million, a PE ratio of -1.15 and a beta of 2.52.

Humacyte (NASDAQ:HUMA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by $0.01. Humacyte had a negative return on equity of 2,914.18% and a negative net margin of 4,836.06%.The business had revenue of $0.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.46 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Humacyte will post -0.34 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Dale A. Sander sold 45,887 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $0.90, for a total value of $41,298.30. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 267,213 shares in the company, valued at approximately $240,491.70. This represents a 14.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Shamik J. Parikh sold 45,887 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $0.90, for a total transaction of $41,298.30. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 272,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $245,441.70. This represents a 14.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Company insiders own 3.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Humacyte

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Humacyte by 33.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,948,508 shares of the company's stock worth $6,163,000 after purchasing an additional 738,142 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Humacyte by 31.3% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 70,067 shares of the company's stock valued at $146,000 after buying an additional 16,702 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Humacyte by 51.1% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 177,623 shares of the company's stock valued at $371,000 after buying an additional 60,059 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Humacyte during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in Humacyte by 5,308.2% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,639,194 shares of the company's stock worth $5,516,000 after buying an additional 2,590,394 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 44.71% of the company's stock.

Humacyte Company Profile

Humacyte, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and manufacturing of off-the-shelf, regenerative human acellular vessels (HAVs) designed to address critical vascular access needs. The company's proprietary vessels are engineered from human donor cells and then decellularized to create a biocompatible scaffold capable of integrating with a patient's own tissue. Humacyte's primary business activities encompass process development, large-scale manufacturing, and clinical evaluation of HAVs for use in end-stage renal disease, peripheral arterial disease and other vascular repair applications.

The company's lead product candidate, the HAV, has advanced through multiple clinical trials for arteriovenous access in hemodialysis patients, demonstrating durability, reduced infection rates and compatibility with repeated cannulation.

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