Rafael (NYSE:RFL) Downgraded to Sell Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Rafael's stock rating has been downgraded from "hold" to "sell" by Wall Street Zen, indicating a shift in analyst sentiment about the company's future performance.
• The company's latest quarterly earnings report showed a loss of $0.19 EPS and a revenue of only $0.36 million, raising concerns about its financial health.
• CEO Howard S. Jonas made a significant insider purchase, acquiring over 13 million shares at $1.28 per share, further reflecting his confidence in the company despite recent downgrades.

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Rafael (NYSE:RFL - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Saturday morning.

Rafael Trading Down 1.4%

NYSE RFL traded down $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $1.72. 50,042 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 139,035. The stock has a market cap of $60.18 million, a PE ratio of -1.82 and a beta of 0.99. Rafael has a one year low of $1.28 and a one year high of $3.19. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $1.87 and a 200-day moving average of $1.82.

Rafael (NYSE:RFL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 11th. The company reported ($0.19) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Rafael had a negative return on equity of 24.75% and a negative net margin of 3,127.60%. The firm had revenue of $0.36 million for the quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Rafael news, CEO Howard S. Jonas acquired 13,080,457 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $1.28 per share, with a total value of $16,742,984.96. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 12,299,207 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,742,984.96. This represents a -1,674.30% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 10.20% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rafael

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ieq Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Rafael in the 1st quarter valued at about $447,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Rafael by 17.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 174,561 shares of the company's stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 26,493 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rafael during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Institutional investors own 11.30% of the company's stock.

Rafael Company Profile

Rafael Holdings, Inc primarily engages in holding interests in clinical and early-stage pharmaceutical companies, and commercial real estate assets in the United States and Israel. It operates in two segments, Healthcare and Real Estate. The company engages in the development and commercialization of therapies that exploit the metabolic differences between normal cells and cancer cells.