Investors Purchase High Volume of Zura Bio Call Options (NASDAQ:ZURA)

Key Points

• Traders bought 3,037 Zura Bio call options on Tuesday, about 57% above the average daily volume; shares rose 22.2% to $1.51 that day.
• Zura Bio said its Phase 2 TibuSHIELD trial missed its primary endpoint and halted development of tibulizumab for hidradenitis suppurativa, a significant setback for its pipeline.
• Law firms have announced investigations into the company’s disclosures, while an existing shelf registration allows for up to $700 million in securities; neither the investigations nor the registration mean wrongdoing or an imminent offering has been established.

Zura Bio Limited (NASDAQ:ZURA - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders bought 3,037 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 57% compared to the average daily volume of 1,935 call options.

Key Zura Bio News

Here are the key news stories impacting Zura Bio this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Zura Bio said the TibuSHIELD Phase 2 trial of tibulizumab (ZB-106) missed its primary endpoint and discontinued development for hidradenitis suppurativa. The failure removes a clinical program from the company’s pipeline and is the main reason shares have fallen sharply. Zura Bio clinical update
• Negative Sentiment: Investor law firms have announced investigations into whether Zura Bio’s disclosures adequately described the program’s status. One notice points to the company’s October 27 filing, which described tibulizumab as advancing in Phase 2, followed less than two weeks later by the trial failure. These are investigations, not findings of wrongdoing. Levi & Korsinsky investigation notice SBS Law investigation notice
• Negative Sentiment: The October 27 SEC filing also included a shelf registration covering up to $700 million in securities. The registration does not mean the company will issue that amount, but potential future fundraising and dilution may add to investor concerns following the trial setback. Investigation notice discussing the filing

Zura Bio Stock Up 22.2%

Shares of NASDAQ ZURA traded up $0.28 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $1.51. The stock had a trading volume of 6,738,212 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,735,277. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $4.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.18. Zura Bio has a 1-year low of $0.93 and a 1-year high of $7.44. The company has a market capitalization of $145.18 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.36 and a beta of 0.03.

Zura Bio (NASDAQ:ZURA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.20). On average, research analysts forecast that Zura Bio will post -0.82 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wedbush upped their target price on shares of Zura Bio from $15.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Zura Bio in a report on Friday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Zura Bio from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Zura Bio from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Zura Bio currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $17.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ZURA. Montanova Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Zura Bio by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Montanova Capital LLC now owns 9,443,001 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,714,000 after acquiring an additional 376,000 shares in the last quarter. EcoR1 Capital LLC bought a new stake in Zura Bio in the first quarter worth $7,019,000. Siren L.L.C. raised its holdings in Zura Bio by 187.3% during the first quarter. Siren L.L.C. now owns 3,734,866 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,222,000 after buying an additional 2,434,866 shares in the last quarter. Stempoint Capital LP bought a new position in Zura Bio during the first quarter valued at about $4,483,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Zura Bio by 3,007.7% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 136,523 shares of the company's stock worth $812,000 after buying an additional 132,130 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.14% of the company's stock.

Zura Bio Company Profile

Zura Bio, Ltd. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing medicines for immune-mediated diseases. The company's research and development programs are designed to address conditions in which abnormal immune-system activity contributes to inflammation and tissue damage.

Zura Bio's lead investigational product, ZT-101, formerly known as ZB-106 or tibulizumab, is a dual-antagonist antibody designed to inhibit signaling associated with interleukin-17A and B-cell activating factor.

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