Liquidia Technologies (NASDAQ:LQDA) Hits New 52-Week High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Liquidia Technologies reached a new 52-week high at $20.33, with its last trading price being $19.11 and a volume of 2,587,496 shares exchanged.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Liquidia, with a consensus target price of $26.89, while Wells Fargo increased their price objective to $25.00 and Bank of America lowered it to $23.00.
• Insider transactions revealed some selling activity, with notable sales including CFO Michael Kaseta offloading 11,580 shares at an average price of $14.28.

Liquidia Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:LQDA - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $20.33 and last traded at $19.11, with a volume of 2587496 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $19.26.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on LQDA. Raymond James Financial upped their price objective 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. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Liquidia Technologies in a report on Monday, June 2nd. HC Wainwright raised their price objective on shares of Liquidia Technologies from $29.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Liquidia Technologies from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $13.00 target price on shares of Liquidia Technologies and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $26.89.

Liquidia Technologies Trading Down 5.4%

The business's 50 day simple moving average is $15.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08, a current ratio of 2.93 and a quick ratio of 2.91. The company has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.19 and a beta of 0.14.

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

Insider Activity

In other Liquidia Technologies news, insider Sarah Krepp sold 2,673 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.28, for a total value of $38,170.44. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 142,499 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,034,885.72. The trade was a 1.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jason Adair sold 2,576 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.28, for a total transaction of $36,785.28. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 193,634 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,765,093.52. This represents a 1.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 60,277 shares of company stock valued at $869,392. 26.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Liquidia Technologies

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Liquidia Technologies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Liquidia Technologies by 65.6% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,961 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 1,173 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Liquidia Technologies by 35.0% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,632 shares of the company's stock worth $78,000 after buying an additional 1,719 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Liquidia Technologies in the 1st quarter worth about $79,000. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in Liquidia Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $142,000. 64.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Liquidia Technologies

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).