Kura Oncology (NASDAQ:KURA) Hits New 1-Year High on Insider Buying Activity

Key Points

• Kura Oncology shares hit a new 52-week high of $13.50 after CEO Troy Edward Wilson purchased 100,000 shares for approximately $1.24 million, increasing his direct holdings by 26.37%.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $25.40; 10 analysts rate the stock Buy, two Hold and one Sell.
• The company reported quarterly revenue of $20.87 million and an adjusted loss of $0.77 per share, beating analyst estimates, though it continues to post substantial negative margins and return on equity.

Shares of Kura Oncology, Inc. (NASDAQ:KURA - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The company traded as high as $13.50 and last traded at $13.3770, with a volume of 144530 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $12.40.

Specifically, CEO Troy Edward Wilson purchased 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $12.39 per share, with a total value of $1,239,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 479,194 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,937,213.66. This trade represents a 26.37% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on KURA shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Kura Oncology in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $24.00 target price on Kura Oncology in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $24.00 price target on Kura Oncology in a report on Monday. Citizens Jmp reiterated a "market outperform" rating and set a $24.00 price target on shares of Kura Oncology in a research report on Monday. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $24.00 price objective on shares of Kura Oncology in a report on Monday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kura Oncology presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $25.40.

Kura Oncology Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.95 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 4.73, a quick ratio of 4.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $10.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.50.

Kura Oncology (NASDAQ:KURA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The company reported ($0.77) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.88) by $0.11. Kura Oncology had a negative return on equity of 207.18% and a negative net margin of 384.30%.The company had revenue of $20.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.16 million. Analysts forecast that Kura Oncology, Inc. will post -3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Kura Oncology

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in Kura Oncology by 115.3% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,398 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,284 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of Kura Oncology by 59.9% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,146 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 1,553 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kura Oncology by 49.0% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,742 shares of the company's stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 1,888 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in shares of Kura Oncology by 471.3% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 12,071 shares of the company's stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 9,958 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brevan Howard Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Kura Oncology during the second quarter worth approximately $80,000.

Kura Oncology Company Profile

Kura Oncology, Inc NASDAQ: KURA is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of targeted oncology therapies. Headquartered in La Jolla, California, the company leverages expertise in molecular biology and precision medicine to identify key drivers of cancer growth and design small-molecule inhibitors that block those pathways. Kura's research platform integrates genomic insights with medicinal chemistry to advance candidates against well-validated targets in solid tumors and hematologic malignancies.

The company's lead clinical candidate, tipifarnib, is a farnesyltransferase inhibitor being evaluated for the treatment of HRAS-mutant head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and various non-small cell lung cancers.

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