Maplight Therapeutics (NASDAQ:MPLT) Shares Down 9.2% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Maplight Therapeutics shares fell 9.2% to $13.64 in mid-day trading, with volume more than doubling the average. The stock remains well below its 50-day moving average of $31.28.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive, with an overall “Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $34.42, although ratings range from “Strong Buy” to “Sell.” The company’s latest quarterly loss of $1.34 per share missed estimates of $0.91.
• Insider activity was mixed: a director bought 15,620 shares at $9.52, while insiders sold nearly 380,000 shares worth $10.6 million over the past three months. Several major institutional investors also established sizable positions in the company.

Maplight Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:MPLT - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 9.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $13.63 and last traded at $13.64. Approximately 895,748 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 111% from the average daily volume of 425,081 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.02.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Maplight Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Maplight Therapeutics in a research report on Monday. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Maplight Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, July 20th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $46.00 target price on the stock. Craig Hallum reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of Maplight Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Maplight Therapeutics in a report on Monday, July 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $34.42.

Maplight Therapeutics Price Performance

The stock's 50-day moving average is $31.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.99. The stock has a market cap of $587.45 million and a P/E ratio of -0.34.

Maplight Therapeutics (NASDAQ:MPLT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported ($1.34) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.91) by ($0.43). On average, analysts anticipate that Maplight Therapeutics, Inc. will post -5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Troy Cox purchased 15,620 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were bought at an average price of $9.52 per share, for a total transaction of $148,702.40. Following the acquisition, the director owned 15,620 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $148,702.40. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Erin Pennock Foff sold 4,438 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.54, for a total transaction of $126,660.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 346,059 shares in the company, valued at $9,876,523.86. This trade represents a 1.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 379,987 shares of company stock valued at $10,644,411 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Maplight Therapeutics

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MPLT. Fcpm Iii Services B.V. purchased a new stake in shares of Maplight Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $56,672,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Maplight Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth $49,154,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. bought a new stake in Maplight Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,026,000. Nan Fung Group Holdings Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Maplight Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $17,060,000. Finally, 5AM Venture Management LLC purchased a new position in Maplight Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $16,687,000.

About Maplight Therapeutics

We are a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on improving the lives of patients suffering from debilitating central nervous system, or CNS, disorders. We were founded by globally recognized leaders in psychiatry and neuroscience research to address the lack of circuit-specific pharmacotherapies available for patients. Our discovery platform holds the potential to fill this void by identifying neural circuits causally linked to disease and targeting those circuits for therapeutic modulation.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.