Investors Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Oncobiologics (NASDAQ:OTLK)

Key Points

• Call-option activity surged: Traders purchased 7,771 OTLK call options, 132% above the average volume, signaling heightened speculative interest.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: BTIG upgraded the stock to Buy with a $4 target, while other firms issued Hold or Sell ratings. The consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $4.65.
• Shares fell sharply and fundamentals disappointed: OTLK dropped 24.2% to $1.06, while its latest quarterly loss and revenue missed analyst expectations. Director Ghiath M. Sukhtian nonetheless increased his position by 63% through a purchase of 8.54 million shares.

Oncobiologics, Inc. (NASDAQ:OTLK - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Traders bought 7,771 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 132% compared to the average volume of 3,355 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on OTLK. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Oncobiologics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. BTIG Research raised shares of Oncobiologics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $4.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday. HC Wainwright upped their price target on shares of Oncobiologics to $1.60 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday. Ascendiant Capital Markets raised their price objective on Oncobiologics from $6.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Oncobiologics from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Oncobiologics has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $4.65.

Insider Activity at Oncobiologics

In other Oncobiologics news, Director Ghiath M. Sukhtian acquired 8,539,709 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $0.59 per share, for a total transaction of $5,038,428.31. Following the acquisition, the director owned 22,092,068 shares in the company, valued at $13,034,320.12. The trade was a 63.01% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oncobiologics

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OTLK. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Oncobiologics by 74.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 103,524 shares of the company's stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 44,063 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Oncobiologics by 42.7% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 84,671 shares of the company's stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 25,351 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Oncobiologics by 865.2% in the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 24,477 shares of the company's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 21,941 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 11.20% of the company's stock.

Oncobiologics Trading Down 24.2%

OTLK stock traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $1.06. The company had a trading volume of 39,817,543 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,093,101. The stock has a market cap of $158.25 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.91 and a beta of 0.77. Oncobiologics has a 52 week low of $0.16 and a 52 week high of $3.39. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $1.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $0.65.

Oncobiologics (NASDAQ:OTLK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 15th. The company reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $0.13 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.39 million. Analysts predict that Oncobiologics will post -0.48 earnings per share for the current year.

About Oncobiologics

Oncobiologics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of biosimilar therapeutics for cancer and autoimmune diseases. Leveraging recombinant DNA technology and advanced formulation platforms, the company aims to create high-quality, cost-effective alternatives to originator biologic drugs. Oncobiologics' research focus includes monoclonal antibodies and growth factors that support oncology treatment and immunomodulation.

Founded in 2005 and headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts, Oncobiologics maintains research facilities in the Greater Boston area and an integrated manufacturing site in Hyderabad, India, through its wholly owned subsidiary.

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