Kodiak Sciences (NASDAQ:KOD) Shares Gap Up on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Kodiak Sciences shares experienced a significant increase following an upgrade by Barclays from an underweight to an equal weight rating, with the stock opening at $16.34 after a previous close of $15.49.
• Barclays has set a new price target of $17.00, a substantial increase from its earlier estimate of $7.00.
• Currently, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" among analysts, with an average price target of $13.00, indicating mixed sentiments regarding its future performance.

Kodiak Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ:KOD - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after Barclays upgraded the stock from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating. The stock had previously closed at $15.49, but opened at $16.34. Barclays now has a $17.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $7.00. Kodiak Sciences shares last traded at $18.10, with a volume of 375,073 shares changing hands.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Kodiak Sciences in a research note on Monday. They set a "buy" rating and a $15.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Kodiak Sciences from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $15.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, HC Wainwright lifted their price objective on shares of Kodiak Sciences from $3.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $13.00.

Institutional Trading of Kodiak Sciences

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KOD. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. boosted its stake in Kodiak Sciences by 55.1% in the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 2,055,707 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,668,000 after acquiring an additional 730,000 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kodiak Sciences by 1.2% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,969,876 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,343,000 after purchasing an additional 23,742 shares in the last quarter. ICONIQ Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Kodiak Sciences by 24.6% during the 1st quarter. ICONIQ Capital LLC now owns 1,266,563 shares of the company's stock worth $3,559,000 after acquiring an additional 249,699 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in Kodiak Sciences by 90.1% during the 1st quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 685,198 shares of the company's stock worth $1,922,000 after buying an additional 324,722 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nantahala Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Kodiak Sciences by 11.3% in the second quarter. Nantahala Capital Management LLC now owns 590,884 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,204,000 after purchasing an additional 60,171 shares in the last quarter. 89.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kodiak Sciences Price Performance

The company's 50-day simple moving average is $8.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $952.43 million, a P/E ratio of -4.75 and a beta of 2.45.

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

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.

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