ProKidney (NASDAQ:PROK) Shares Up 8.1% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• ProKidney Corp. (NASDAQ:PROK) shares rose 8.1% during trading, reaching a high of $2.55, with significant decrease in trading volume compared to the average session.
• Analysts have set varied price targets, with Citigroup upgrading its target to $9.00, while Bank of America downgraded its target to $1.00, reflecting differing sentiments on the stock.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings surprise of $0.01, with earnings per share at ($0.13), and analysts predict a full-year EPS of -$0.57.

ProKidney Corp. (NASDAQ:PROK - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 8.1% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $2.49 and last traded at $2.55. Approximately 196,785 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 97% from the average daily volume of 5,753,209 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.36.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of ProKidney from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $7.00 price objective (up previously from $6.00) on shares of ProKidney in a report on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of ProKidney from $4.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and set a $9.00 target price (up from $6.00) on shares of ProKidney in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised 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. According to MarketBeat, ProKidney presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $6.25.

ProKidney Trading Up 3.9%

The firm has a market cap of $705.41 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.23 and a beta of 1.76. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $2.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $1.42.

ProKidney (NASDAQ:PROK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 12th. The company reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $0.22 million for the quarter. Analysts predict that ProKidney Corp. will post -0.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Darin J. Weber sold 103,480 shares of ProKidney stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.02, for a total value of $312,509.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 41.49% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of ProKidney during the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in ProKidney by 106.4% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 52,570 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 27,098 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings 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 buying an additional 11,250 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in shares of ProKidney by 49.4% during the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 86,337 shares of the company's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 28,546 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of ProKidney in the 4th quarter valued at about $88,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.59% of the company's stock.

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.