StockNews.com Downgrades Kura Oncology (NASDAQ:KURA) to Sell

Kura Oncology (NASDAQ:KURA - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Kura Oncology in a report on Friday, December 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $26.00 target price on the stock. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $37.00 price target on shares of Kura Oncology in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $32.00 price objective on shares of Kura Oncology in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their target price on shares of Kura Oncology from $22.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $28.28.

Kura Oncology Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ KURA traded down $0.47 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $19.01. 751,803 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,356,508. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $20.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.14 and a beta of 0.85. Kura Oncology has a 52 week low of $7.41 and a 52 week high of $24.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 12.26 and a current ratio of 12.26.

Kura Oncology (NASDAQ:KURA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported ($0.55) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.56) by $0.01. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.49) EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Kura Oncology will post -2.35 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Kura Oncology

In related news, CEO Troy Edward Wilson sold 91,052 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.23, for a total transaction of $1,841,981.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,308.57. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Troy Edward Wilson sold 91,052 shares of Kura Oncology stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.23, for a total transaction of $1,841,981.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,308.57. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Kathleen Ford sold 1,496 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.80, for a total transaction of $26,628.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 21,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at $384,515.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 96,919 shares of company stock worth $1,946,415. Corporate insiders own 5.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kura Oncology

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in Kura Oncology by 45.0% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,097 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 651 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in Kura Oncology by 46.8% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,710 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 1,501 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Kura Oncology by 40.4% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,038 shares of the company's stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 1,449 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of Kura Oncology by 81.5% in the 2nd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 6,801 shares of the company's stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 3,053 shares during the period. Finally, Pale Fire Capital SE acquired a new stake in Kura Oncology during the third quarter worth approximately $92,000.

Kura Oncology Company Profile

Kura Oncology, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, develops medicines for the treatment of cancer. The company's pipeline consists of small molecule product candidates that target cancer. Its lead product candidates are ziftomenib, an orally bioavailable small molecule inhibitor of the menin-KMT2A interaction for the treatment of genetically defined subsets of acute leukemias, including acute myeloid leukemia and acute lymphoblastic leukemia; tipifarnib, an orally bioavailable farnesyl transferase inhibitor combination with alpelisib for patients with PIK3CA-dependent HNSCC; and KO-2806, a farnesyl transferase inhibitor for the treatment of solid tumors.

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