WeRide (NASDAQ:WRD) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• WeRide shares opened higher, rising from a prior close of $5.53 to $5.73 before last trading at $5.6550 on volume of 568,508 shares.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive: seven analysts rate the stock Buy, with an overall “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $12.27, despite one recent Sell downgrade.
• WeRide reported quarterly revenue of $34.11 million and an EPS loss of $0.18, while maintaining substantial liquidity but continuing to post steep losses, including a negative net margin of 199.09%.

WeRide Inc. (NASDAQ:WRD - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Monday. The stock had previously closed at $5.53, but opened at $5.73. WeRide shares last traded at $5.6550, with a volume of 568,508 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WRD has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $12.00 price target on shares of WeRide in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Bank of America reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $10.70 price objective on shares of WeRide in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Wall Street Zen cut WeRide from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised WeRide from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research report on Friday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WeRide presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $12.27.

WeRide Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.49 and a beta of 1.89. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $6.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 5.00 and a current ratio of 5.36.

WeRide (NASDAQ:WRD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The company reported ($0.18) earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $34.11 million during the quarter. WeRide had a negative net margin of 199.09% and a negative return on equity of 24.12%. As a group, research analysts predict that WeRide Inc. will post -0.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of WeRide

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in WeRide by 4,926.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,595,319 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,086,000 after purchasing an additional 3,523,785 shares in the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of WeRide during the first quarter worth about $1,845,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of WeRide by 229.3% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 2,305,997 shares of the company's stock worth $18,656,000 after buying an additional 1,605,657 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of WeRide in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,461,000. Finally, Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. raised its position in shares of WeRide by 229.3% in the first quarter. Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 2,305,997 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,609,000 after buying an additional 1,605,657 shares during the last quarter.

About WeRide

WeRide Inc is a global autonomous driving technology company that develops hardware, software and operating services for vehicles capable of performing driving tasks with limited or no human intervention. The company focuses primarily on Level 2 through Level 4 autonomous driving technologies for passenger transportation, freight and urban services.

Its product portfolio includes robotaxis, robobuses, robovans and autonomous driving systems for logistics and other commercial vehicles. WeRide also develops autonomous sanitation vehicles, including street-sweeping and cleaning vehicles, as well as advanced driver-assistance and autonomous-driving solutions for vehicle manufacturers and mobility operators.

Founded in 2017 and headquartered in Guangzhou, China, WeRide has conducted testing and commercial or pilot operations in multiple markets, including China, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.

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