Legend Biotech's (LEGN) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at HC Wainwright

Key Points

• HC Wainwright reaffirmed its Buy rating on Legend Biotech with a $50.00 price target, implying roughly a 167.5% upside from the stock's current level.
• Legend reported quarterly EPS of $0.01 versus consensus of ($0.17), beating estimates, while revenue was $306.3M (slightly below the $310.2M estimate) but up 64.2% year‑over‑year; the company still shows negative return on equity and net margin.
• The stock opened at $18.69 (52‑week range $16.24–$45.30) with a market cap of $3.46B; analysts hold a consensus "Moderate Buy" with a $58.31 average target amid a wide spread of price targets and heavy institutional ownership (~70.9%).

Legend Biotech (NASDAQ:LEGN - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reissued by stock analysts at HC Wainwright in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $50.00 price objective on the stock. HC Wainwright's price objective suggests a potential upside of 167.52% from the company's current price.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Legend Biotech from $50.00 to $49.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating and set a $21.00 price objective (down from $62.00) on shares of Legend Biotech in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Legend Biotech from $66.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Truist Financial downgraded Legend Biotech from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer began coverage on Legend Biotech in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price objective for the company. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $58.31.

Legend Biotech Stock Up 5.7%

Shares of LEGN opened at $18.69 on Wednesday. Legend Biotech has a 52-week low of $16.24 and a 52-week high of $45.30. The company has a market capitalization of $3.46 billion, a PE ratio of -23.36 and a beta of 0.08. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.65.

Legend Biotech (NASDAQ:LEGN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 11th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.17) by $0.18. Legend Biotech had a negative return on equity of 21.93% and a negative net margin of 28.86%.The business had revenue of $306.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $310.21 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.07 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 64.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Legend Biotech will post -1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Ying Huang sold 9,936 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.77, for a total transaction of $87,138.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 247,438 shares in the company, valued at $2,170,031.26. This trade represents a 3.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Legend Biotech

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Legend Biotech by 76.5% in the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 847 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 367 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Legend Biotech by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 13,710 shares of the company's stock valued at $298,000 after buying an additional 581 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Legend Biotech by 102.6% in the 3rd quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management now owns 1,228 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 622 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Legend Biotech by 171.9% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 662 shares during the period. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. boosted its stake in shares of Legend Biotech by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 20,806 shares of the company's stock valued at $452,000 after buying an additional 863 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.89% of the company's stock.

Legend Biotech Company Profile

Legend Biotech NASDAQ: LEGN is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development and commercialization of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapies for oncology. Headquartered in Somerset, New Jersey, with research and development operations in Shanghai, the company leverages a global infrastructure to advance innovative cellular therapies. Legend Biotech pursues a strategy of strategic collaboration to extend its reach, most notably through its partnership with Janssen Biotech, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson.

The company's lead asset, ciltacabtagene autoleucel (commercially marketed as Carvykti), is a B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)–directed CAR-T therapy for the treatment of relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.

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