MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on MNKD. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $11.00 price target on shares of MannKind in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Mizuho started coverage on shares of MannKind in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $12.00 target price for the company. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $10.33.

MannKind Price Performance

Shares of MNKD stock traded down $0.06 during trading on Friday, reaching $3.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,484,473 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,386,707. The company has a market capitalization of $1.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.50 and a beta of 1.02. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $4.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.32. MannKind has a 1-year low of $3.70 and a 1-year high of $7.63.

MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.01. MannKind had a net margin of 10.12% and a negative return on equity of 32.41%. The company had revenue of $78.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $75.86 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.05 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 18.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that MannKind will post 0.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at MannKind

In related news, EVP David Thomson sold 32,179 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.68, for a total value of $150,597.72. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 772,427 shares in the company, valued at $3,614,958.36. This represents a 4.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Steven B. Binder sold 80,144 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.69, for a total transaction of $375,875.36. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,006,611 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,721,005.59. This trade represents a 7.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 190,831 shares of company stock worth $846,298 in the last 90 days. 3.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MannKind

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new position in MannKind during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in MannKind by 3,294.8% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 6,586 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 6,392 shares during the last quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in MannKind during the 1st quarter worth $51,000. Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in MannKind during the 1st quarter worth $56,000. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC purchased a new position in MannKind during the 4th quarter worth $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.55% of the company's stock.

About MannKind

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.