Kura Oncology (NASDAQ:KURA) Shares Gap Up After Insider Buying Activity

Key Points

• Kura Oncology's shares experienced a significant gap up, opening at $8.62 after an insider, CEO Troy Edward Wilson, purchased 50,000 shares, increasing his ownership by 98.10%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Kura Oncology, with targets ranging from $24.10 to $36.00, citing an average rating of "Moderate Buy" among the analysts surveyed.
• The company reported disappointing earnings, with a loss of ($0.75) EPS for the last quarter, which was below expectations, alongside revenue of only $15.29 million against a forecast of $64.95 million.

Kura Oncology, Inc. (NASDAQ:KURA - Get Free Report) shares gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock had previously closed at $8.01, but opened at $8.62. Kura Oncology shares last traded at $8.36, with a volume of 819,759 shares changing hands.

Specifically, CEO Troy Edward Wilson purchased 50,000 shares of Kura Oncology stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $8.20 per share, with a total value of $410,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 100,968 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $827,937.60. This trade represents a 98.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KURA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Kura Oncology from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 19th. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Kura Oncology in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Kura Oncology in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. JMP Securities reduced their price objective on shares of Kura Oncology from $28.00 to $24.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Guggenheim assumed coverage on shares of Kura Oncology in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $24.10.

Kura Oncology Stock Up 3.9%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 6.16 and a quick ratio of 6.16. The firm's 50-day moving average is $6.76 and its 200 day moving average is $6.57. The stock has a market cap of $722.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.68 and a beta of 0.19.

Kura Oncology (NASDAQ:KURA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.75) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.90). The company had revenue of $15.29 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $64.95 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kura Oncology, Inc. will post -2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kura Oncology

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of Kura Oncology in the first quarter worth $48,000. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kura Oncology in the first quarter worth $66,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in shares of Kura Oncology by 471.3% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 12,071 shares of the company's stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 9,958 shares in the last quarter. Flower City Capital acquired a new stake in shares of Kura Oncology in the first quarter worth $79,000. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kura Oncology in the first quarter worth $79,000.

Kura Oncology Company Profile

Kura Oncology, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, develops medicines for the treatment of cancer. The company's pipeline consists of small molecule product candidates that target cancer. Its lead product candidates are ziftomenib, an orally bioavailable small molecule inhibitor of the menin-KMT2A interaction for the treatment of genetically defined subsets of acute leukemias, including acute myeloid leukemia and acute lymphoblastic leukemia; tipifarnib, an orally bioavailable farnesyl transferase inhibitor combination with alpelisib for patients with PIK3CA-dependent HNSCC; and KO-2806, a farnesyl transferase inhibitor for the treatment of solid tumors.

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