Kodiak Sciences (NASDAQ:KOD) Now Covered by Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group has initiated coverage on Kodiak Sciences (NASDAQ: KOD) with a "buy" rating and a price target of $15.00, indicating a potential upside of 14.29% from its current price.
• Kodiak Sciences' stock recently rose by 37.7%, trading at $13.12, while averaging a volume significantly higher than its typical trading activity.
• The company has a consensus rating of "Hold" among analysts, with an average price target of $10.50, reflecting mixed sentiments toward its current valuation.

Stock analysts at Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Kodiak Sciences (NASDAQ:KOD - Get Free Report) in a research report issued on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm set a "buy" rating and a $15.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group's target price suggests a potential downside of 0.07% from the company's previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. HC Wainwright lifted their price target on shares of Kodiak Sciences from $3.00 to $5.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Kodiak Sciences from $4.00 to $7.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Kodiak Sciences from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $15.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $10.50.

Kodiak Sciences Stock Up 57.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:KOD traded up $5.48 during trading on Monday, reaching $15.01. 5,717,645 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 422,223. Kodiak Sciences has a fifty-two week low of $1.92 and a fifty-two week high of $16.30. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.31. The firm has a market cap of $792.83 million, a PE ratio of -3.95 and a beta of 2.44.

Kodiak Sciences (NASDAQ:KOD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 13th. The company reported ($1.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.01) by ($0.02). On average, equities research analysts forecast that Kodiak Sciences will post -3.45 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kodiak Sciences

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Kodiak Sciences by 256.4% in the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 8,083 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 5,815 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in shares of Kodiak Sciences by 131.7% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 9,282 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 5,276 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. acquired a new stake in Kodiak Sciences during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its position in Kodiak Sciences by 183.9% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 14,759 shares of the company's stock worth $147,000 after purchasing an additional 9,560 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its stake in Kodiak Sciences by 21.7% during the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 15,070 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 2,691 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.06% of the company's stock.

About Kodiak Sciences

Kodiak Sciences Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, researches, develops, and commercializes therapeutics to treat retinal diseases. Its lead product candidate is tarcocimab tedromer (KSI-301), an anti-vascular endothelial growth factor antibody biopolymer that is in Phase IIb/III clinical study to treat wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), as well as Phase III clinical study for the treatment of diabetic macular edema, naïve macular edema due to retinal vein occlusion, and non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy.