Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX) Shares Up 1.6% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Shares rose about 1.6% to $1.30 on Monday but volume was 66% below average, with the stock trading near its 50-day ($1.26) and 200-day ($1.38) moving averages and a market cap of roughly $80.5 million.
• Wall Street sentiment is weak: the consensus rating is "Reduce" with an average price target of $3.00, and analysts have recently cut price targets and issued mixed ratings (1 Buy, 2 Hold, 2 Sell).
• Pliant is a clinical-stage biopharma developing PLN-74809 for fibrotic diseases and recently beat quarterly EPS estimates (‑$0.35 vs. ‑$0.44), while the CEO sold shares reducing his stake and institutional ownership remains very high.

Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 1.6% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $1.33 and last traded at $1.30. 167,616 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 492,622 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1.28.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on PLRX. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on Pliant Therapeutics from $4.00 to $3.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Pliant Therapeutics from $4.00 to $3.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Pliant Therapeutics has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $3.00.

Pliant Therapeutics Stock Up 1.6%

The stock has a market capitalization of $80.50 million, a PE ratio of -0.53 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $1.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $1.38.

Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 11th. The company reported ($0.35) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.44) by $0.09. On average, equities analysts forecast that Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Pliant Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Bernard Coulie sold 89,375 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.28, for a total transaction of $114,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 505,601 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $647,169.28. This trade represents a 15.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 6.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Pliant Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PLRX. Woodline Partners LP increased its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 1,875.0% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,514,084 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,394,000 after acquiring an additional 2,386,789 shares during the last quarter. BML Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,886,000. Prosight Management LP increased its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 7,493.8% during the fourth quarter. Prosight Management LP now owns 1,555,744 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,898,000 after acquiring an additional 1,535,257 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 307.1% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,958,433 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,272,000 after acquiring an additional 1,477,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Monaco Asset Management SAM increased its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 135.7% during the fourth quarter. Monaco Asset Management SAM now owns 1,938,747 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,365,000 after acquiring an additional 1,116,054 shares during the last quarter. 97.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pliant Therapeutics Company Profile

Pliant Therapeutics, Inc NASDAQ: PLRX is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing novel therapies for fibrotic diseases. Headquartered in Redwood City, California, Pliant applies a precision medicine approach to target integrin-mediated signaling pathways implicated in the development and progression of fibrosis across organ systems.

The company's lead product candidate, PLN-74809, is an oral small molecule designed to inhibit both αvβ1 and αvβ6 integrins in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC).

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