Kura Oncology (NASDAQ:KURA) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Kura Oncology's shares gapped up from $6.60 to $7.05 prior to trading, eventually closing at $7.54 with significant trading volume of 688,364 shares.
• Analysts' opinions are mixed, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.10, while various firms adjusted target prices between $11.00 and $36.00.
• The company reported disappointing quarterly earnings, with an EPS of ($0.75), missing the consensus estimate by $0.90 and dramatically falling short of revenue expectations.

Kura Oncology, Inc. (NASDAQ:KURA - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $6.60, but opened at $7.05. Kura Oncology shares last traded at $7.54, with a volume of 688,364 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on KURA shares. Barclays cut their price target on Kura Oncology from $32.00 to $11.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Mizuho cut their target price on Kura Oncology from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $36.00 price target on shares of Kura Oncology in a research note on Friday, June 20th. JMP Securities lowered 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 report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $40.00 price objective on shares of Kura Oncology in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.10.

Kura Oncology Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $611.94 million, a P/E ratio of -3.12 and a beta of 0.41. 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 company's 50-day simple moving average is $6.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.63.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in KURA. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in shares of Kura Oncology by 48.5% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 34,989 shares of the company's stock worth $305,000 after acquiring an additional 11,427 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Kura Oncology by 22.0% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 201,864 shares of the company's stock worth $1,757,000 after acquiring an additional 36,380 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Kura Oncology during the 4th quarter worth approximately $180,000. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Kura Oncology during the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,265,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Kura Oncology by 35.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,425,960 shares of the company's stock worth $12,419,000 after acquiring an additional 372,196 shares during the period.

About Kura Oncology

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.