ImmunityBio Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:IBRX)

Key Points

• Traders bought an unusually large volume of call options—48,270 calls, a 65% increase versus typical daily call volume—while the stock rose about 11.0% to $10.86 on Monday.
• ImmunityBio reported Q results with adjusted EPS of ($0.06) beating the consensus of ($0.08) and revenue of $38.29M; analysts maintain a Moderate Buy stance with an average price target of $12.60.
• Corporate insiders have been selling recently—about 501,967 shares worth roughly $4.47M in the last three months—despite insiders still owning 69.48% of the company.

ImmunityBio, Inc. (NASDAQ:IBRX - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders acquired 48,270 call options on the company. This is an increase of 65% compared to the typical daily volume of 29,183 call options.

ImmunityBio Trading Up 11.0%

Shares of ImmunityBio stock traded up $1.08 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $10.86. 31,363,871 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 45,216,801. The business has a 50-day moving average of $5.27 and a 200-day moving average of $3.39. ImmunityBio has a 1 year low of $1.83 and a 1 year high of $12.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -28.56 and a beta of -0.04.

ImmunityBio (NASDAQ:IBRX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.08) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $38.29 million for the quarter. As a group, research analysts anticipate that ImmunityBio will post -0.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on IBRX. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of ImmunityBio in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of ImmunityBio from $5.00 to $7.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. D. Boral Capital reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $23.00 price objective on shares of ImmunityBio in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. HC Wainwright lifted their price objective on shares of ImmunityBio from $10.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their target price on shares of ImmunityBio from $6.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $12.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Christobel Selecky sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Barry J. Simon sold 165,000 shares of ImmunityBio 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 in the company, valued at approximately $29,989,665.25. The trade was a 5.34% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 501,967 shares of company stock worth $4,466,412 in the last three months. 69.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ImmunityBio

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Walser Wealth Management Company A Ltd Liability Co acquired a new stake in ImmunityBio in the 4th quarter valued at about $59,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of ImmunityBio by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 182,836 shares of the company's stock valued at $362,000 after purchasing an additional 23,353 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ImmunityBio by 69.7% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 333,149 shares of the company's stock valued at $660,000 after purchasing an additional 136,858 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ImmunityBio in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of ImmunityBio during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. 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.

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