ProKidney (NASDAQ:PROK) Stock Price Down 6.9% After Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• ProKidney Corp. (NASDAQ:PROK) shares fell by 6.9% to $2.37, with trading volume significantly declining to about 359,529 shares, down 94% from its average daily volume.
• Equities analysts have varied opinions on ProKidney, with UBS raising its target to $8.00 while Bank of America has downgraded the stock to an "underperform" rating with a target of $1.00.
• The company's latest earnings report showed a loss of ($0.13) EPS, which beat the consensus estimate, and it anticipates an EPS of -0.57 for the current year.

ProKidney Corp. (NASDAQ:PROK - Get Free Report) shares were down 6.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after Zacks Research downgraded the stock from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating. The company traded as low as $2.38 and last traded at $2.37. Approximately 359,529 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 94% from the average daily volume of 5,734,621 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.54.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $9.00 price target (up previously from $6.00) on shares of ProKidney in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of ProKidney from $4.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $7.00 price target (up previously from $6.00) on shares of ProKidney in a report on Monday, July 14th. Bank of America lowered shares of ProKidney from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $3.00 to $1.00 in a report on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of ProKidney from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $6.25.

Insider Transactions at ProKidney

In other ProKidney news, insider Darin J. Weber sold 103,480 shares of ProKidney stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.02, for a total transaction of $312,509.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 41.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ProKidney

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in ProKidney by 57.3% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 30,879 shares of the company's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 11,250 shares during the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of ProKidney during the 4th quarter valued at about $88,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of ProKidney by 106.4% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 52,570 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 27,098 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in shares of ProKidney by 51.7% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 54,098 shares of the company's stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 18,431 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in shares of ProKidney during the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.59% of the company's stock.

ProKidney Stock Performance

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $2.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1.42. The stock has a market cap of $705.40 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.23 and a beta of 1.76.

ProKidney (NASDAQ:PROK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 12th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $0.22 million for the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that ProKidney Corp. will post -0.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About ProKidney

ProKidney Corp., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, provides transformative proprietary cell therapy platform for treating various chronic kidney diseases in the United States. The company's lead product is Renal Autologous Cell Therapy (REACT), an autologous homologous cell admixture, which has completed Phase I clinical trial for REACT in patients with congenital anomalies of the Kidney and Urinary Tract (CAKUT), as well as in Phase III and Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of moderate to severe diabetic kidney disease.