MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Hold"

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Friday morning.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on MNKD. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $11.00 price target on shares of MannKind in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Mizuho started coverage on MannKind in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $12.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $10.00.

MannKind Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of MNKD traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $4.38. 1,567,101 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,370,489. MannKind has a 52 week low of $4.05 and a 52 week high of $7.63. The company's 50 day moving average is $4.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.47. The company has a market capitalization of $1.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.57 and a beta of 1.02.

MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.01. MannKind had a negative return on equity of 17.74% and a net margin of 8.07%. The business had revenue of $78.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.86 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.05 EPS. The business's revenue was up 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that MannKind will post 0.1 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other MannKind news, EVP David Thomson sold 32,179 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.68, for a total transaction of $150,597.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 772,427 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,614,958.36. This trade represents a 4.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Steven B. Binder sold 80,144 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.69, for a total value of $375,875.36. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,006,611 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,721,005.59. The trade was a 7.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 126,746 shares of company stock valued at $589,958. 2.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MannKind

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MNKD. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of MannKind by 186.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 519,865 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,271,000 after purchasing an additional 338,121 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MannKind by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 184,575 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,187,000 after purchasing an additional 16,057 shares in the last quarter. Beirne Wealth Consulting Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of MannKind during the fourth quarter worth about $66,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MannKind during the fourth quarter worth about $69,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of MannKind by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 789,760 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $5,078,000 after acquiring an additional 51,598 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.55% of the company's stock.

MannKind Company Profile

MannKind Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of inhaled therapeutic products for endocrine and orphan lung diseases in the United States. It offers Afrezza, an inhaled insulin used to improve glycemic control in adults with diabetes, and the V-Go wearable insulin delivery device, which provides continuous subcutaneous infusion of insulin in adults.