ImmunityBio (NASDAQ:IBRX) Stock Price Down 9.2% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• ImmunityBio shares fell 9.2% on Thursday, with the stock trading as low as $7.45 after closing at $8.05 the prior day. Trading volume was far below normal, with about 6.17 million shares changing hands versus a 29.68 million average.
• The biggest positive catalyst was the FDA acceptance of ImmunityBio’s supplemental BLA for ANKTIVA plus BCG in BCG-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, with a PDUFA date set for January 6, 2027. Analysts also remain largely bullish, with several buy ratings and price targets up to $15.
• Despite the pipeline optimism, legal risk is weighing on sentiment as the company faces a securities class-action lawsuit tied to an FDA warning letter and alleged misleading efficacy claims. The stock also comes after a weak earnings report, where ImmunityBio posted a larger-than-expected loss per share.

ImmunityBio, Inc. (NASDAQ:IBRX - Get Free Report) dropped 9.2% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $7.45 and last traded at $7.3090. Approximately 6,173,525 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 29,679,039 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.05.

More ImmunityBio News

Here are the key news stories impacting ImmunityBio this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The FDA accepted ImmunityBio’s supplemental BLA for ANKTIVA plus BCG in BCG-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, setting a PDUFA date of January 6, 2027. This keeps a major growth catalyst alive and supports the recent move higher in the stock. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG and HC Wainwright both reiterated buy ratings on ImmunityBio, with price targets of $12 and $15, suggesting analysts still see meaningful upside from current levels. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: News that the FDA is reviewing ANKTIVA’s label expansion for bladder cancer has reinforced investor optimism around a potential broader approval path. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several law firms issued reminders about the May 26 lead-plaintiff deadline in the pending class-action lawsuit, which keeps the litigation in focus but does not add new allegations. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional reports highlighted that ImmunityBio secured five U.S. patents for Anktiva in bladder cancer, which is supportive longer term but not as immediately market-moving as the FDA and legal developments. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: The biggest headwind is the securities class action tied to the FDA’s warning letter, with multiple firms alleging investors were harmed by misleading efficacy claims; this legal risk is weighing on sentiment. Article Title

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $12.00 target price on shares of ImmunityBio in a research note on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of ImmunityBio in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of ImmunityBio in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $15.00 target price on shares of ImmunityBio in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $12.00 target price (up from $7.00) on shares of ImmunityBio in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $14.20.

ImmunityBio Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $7.97 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.96 and a beta of 0.02. The stock's 50-day moving average is $7.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.53.

ImmunityBio (NASDAQ:IBRX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.62) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.54). The company had revenue of $44.21 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.07 million. On average, analysts predict that ImmunityBio, Inc. will post -0.31 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other ImmunityBio news, Director Christobel Selecky sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Barry J. Simon sold 165,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.25, for a total transaction of $1,691,250.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,925,821 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,989,665.25. This represents a 5.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 275,000 shares of company stock worth $2,934,500. 69.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of ImmunityBio

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in ImmunityBio by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 17,814 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 1,689 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in ImmunityBio by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 29,547 shares of the company's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 1,918 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in ImmunityBio by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 28,783 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 2,271 shares during the last quarter. Archer Investment Corp increased its holdings in ImmunityBio by 67.1% during the first quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 5,872 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 2,358 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mutual Advisors LLC increased its holdings in ImmunityBio by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 30,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. 8.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ImmunityBio Company Profile

ImmunityBio, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company specializing in the development of novel immunotherapies for cancer and infectious diseases. The company’s research platform centers on harnessing the power of the human immune system—through engineered T cells, natural killer (NK) cells, cytokine superagonists and viral-vectored vaccines—to target and eliminate diseased cells across a range of indications.

Among its lead assets is Anktiva (formerly known as N-803), an interleukin-15 superagonist designed to stimulate NK and T cell activity.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.