Traders Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Inovio Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:INO)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: Investors purchased 6,354 call options on Inovio Pharmaceuticals, about 184% above the typical volume of 2,237 contracts.
• Shares fell sharply: INO dropped 16.3% to $0.84 on Wednesday amid trading volume well above its average. The stock remains far below its 52-week high of $2.72.
• Analyst view remains moderately positive: Five analysts rate the stock a Buy, two a Hold and one a Sell, producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $3.17 target price. Institutional investors own 26.79% of the company.

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:INO - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors acquired 6,354 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 184% compared to the typical volume of 2,237 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on INO shares. Zacks Research cut shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $4.00 target price on shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "positive" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $1.80 to $3.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (e+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Inovio Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $3.17.

Inovio Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 16.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:INO traded down $0.17 on Wednesday, reaching $0.84. The company had a trading volume of 5,346,099 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,667,656. Inovio Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $0.56 and a 52-week high of $2.72. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $1.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $87.37 million, a PE ratio of -0.93 and a beta of 1.61.

Inovio Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:INO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.07) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.22) by $0.15. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Inovio Pharmaceuticals will post -0.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Inovio Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of INO. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Inovio Pharmaceuticals by 312.4% during the 3rd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 70,636 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 53,510 shares in the last quarter. LexAurum Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $118,000. Green Alpha Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals by 68.8% in the third quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 114,857 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $140,000 after buying an additional 46,802 shares during the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP purchased a new position in shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its stake in shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals by 46.5% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 36,391 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 11,554 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.79% of the company's stock.

About Inovio Pharmaceuticals

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc NASDAQ: INO is a biotechnology company focused on developing DNA medicines, including immunotherapies and vaccines designed to stimulate targeted immune responses. Its technology platform uses synthetic DNA constructs delivered into cells, with the company's CELLECTRA device platform developed to enhance cellular uptake.

Inovio's pipeline has included candidates for infectious diseases, cancers and other conditions involving the immune system. Its lead programs have included INO-3107, an investigational DNA immunotherapy being developed for recurrent respiratory papillomatosis, and VGX-3100, an earlier candidate studied for human papillomavirus-related disease.

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.