Liquidia Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:LQDA) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Liquidia Technologies, Inc. has received a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from nine analysts, with the average 1-year price target set at $26.89.
• CEO Roger Jeffs recently sold 20,252 shares of the company's stock, representing a 1.91% decrease in his ownership.
• Large institutional investors have shown increased interest, with 64.54% of the stock currently owned by such investors, including notable increases from Raymond James and Teacher Retirement System of Texas.

Shares of Liquidia Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:LQDA - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Buy" by the nine ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $26.89.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on Liquidia Technologies from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen raised Liquidia Technologies from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Scotiabank raised their target price on Liquidia Technologies from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Liquidia Technologies in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Liquidia Technologies from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 12th.

Liquidia Technologies Stock Down 5.4%

LQDA stock traded down $1.01 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $17.68. The company had a trading volume of 3,309,216 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,404,995. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08, a quick ratio of 2.91 and a current ratio of 2.93. The company has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.19 and a beta of 0.14. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $14.92. Liquidia Technologies has a fifty-two week low of $8.26 and a fifty-two week high of $20.33.

Liquidia Technologies (NASDAQ:LQDA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.45) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.42) by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $3.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.23 million. Liquidia Technologies had a negative net margin of 903.80% and a negative return on equity of 177.91%. Analysts forecast that Liquidia Technologies will post -1.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Scott Moomaw sold 4,797 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.28, for a total transaction of $68,501.16. Following the transaction, the insider owned 223,231 shares in the company, valued at $3,187,738.68. This trade represents a 2.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Russell Schundler sold 7,836 shares of Liquidia Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.28, for a total value of $111,898.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 577,977 shares in the company, valued at $8,253,511.56. This trade represents a 1.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 60,277 shares of company stock worth $869,392 over the last ninety days. 26.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LQDA. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Liquidia Technologies in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Liquidia Technologies by 65.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,961 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,173 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Liquidia Technologies by 35.0% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,632 shares of the company's stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 1,719 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Liquidia Technologies in the first quarter worth $79,000. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Liquidia Technologies in the fourth quarter worth $142,000. 64.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Liquidia Technologies Company Profile

Liquidia Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, and commercializes various products for unmet patient needs in the United States. Its lead product candidates include YUTREPIA, an inhaled dry powder formulation of treprostinil for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease (PH-ILD).