Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume

Shares of Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX - Get Free Report) saw an uptick in trading volume on Wednesday . 221,302 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 42% from the previous session's volume of 381,595 shares.The stock last traded at $12.08 and had previously closed at $11.82.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PLRX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Pliant Therapeutics from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $38.00 price target on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $48.00 price objective on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $49.00.

Pliant Therapeutics Stock Performance

The firm's 50 day moving average price is $14.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.43. The firm has a market cap of $763.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.54 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 17.72 and a quick ratio of 17.72.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. First Light Asset Management LLC grew its position in Pliant Therapeutics by 22.4% during the fourth quarter. First Light Asset Management LLC now owns 3,591,776 shares of the company's stock worth $65,047,000 after buying an additional 658,516 shares in the last quarter. Laurion Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Laurion Capital Management LP now owns 3,186,511 shares of the company's stock worth $55,254,000 after purchasing an additional 27,941 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 6.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,945,312 shares of the company's stock valued at $51,072,000 after purchasing an additional 168,454 shares during the period. Great Point Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Great Point Partners LLC now owns 1,823,184 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,018,000 after purchasing an additional 68,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Polar Capital Holdings Plc boosted its stake in Pliant Therapeutics by 1.5% during the third quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 1,665,000 shares of the company's stock worth $28,871,000 after buying an additional 25,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.30% of the company's stock.

Pliant Therapeutics Company Profile

Pliant Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes novel therapies for the treatment of fibrosis and related diseases in the United States. The company's lead candidate is bexotegrast, an oral, small-molecule, dual selective inhibitor of avß6 and avß1 integrins, which is in phase 2b trials for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and in phase 2a trial for primary sclerosing cholangitis.