Weiss Ratings Reaffirms "Sell (D-)" Rating for uniQure (NASDAQ:QURE)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reaffirmed a "Sell (D-)" rating for uniQure, indicating negative sentiment towards the stock.
• Multiple analysts have increased their target prices for uniQure, with Goldman Sachs setting a new target at $56.00 and Cantor Fitzgerald at $80.00, reflecting a possible upside for investors.
• Insider trading has been significant, with CFO and CEO selling substantial shares, which might signal concerns about the future prospects of the company.

uniQure (NASDAQ:QURE - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (d-)" rating reaffirmed by equities research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research report issued on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on uniQure from $13.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on uniQure from $47.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Leerink Partners lifted their price target on shares of uniQure from $48.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of uniQure from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on shares of uniQure from $30.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $71.75.

uniQure Stock Up 3.5%

Shares of QURE stock traded up $2.05 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $59.97. 4,122,336 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,266,252. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 9.98 and a current ratio of 9.98. The company has a market capitalization of $3.29 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.30 and a beta of 0.56. uniQure has a fifty-two week low of $5.23 and a fifty-two week high of $61.80. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $24.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.25.

uniQure (NASDAQ:QURE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.69) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.89) by $0.20. The business had revenue of $5.26 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.00 million. uniQure had a negative return on equity of 1,010.74% and a negative net margin of 1,387.98%. Research analysts predict that uniQure will post -3.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Christian Klemt sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.00, for a total transaction of $825,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 217,730 shares in the company, valued at $11,975,150. This represents a 6.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Matthew C. Kapusta sold 226,316 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.46, for a total transaction of $9,383,061.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 651,454 shares of the company's stock, valued at $27,009,282.84. This trade represents a 25.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 244,316 shares of company stock valued at $10,328,181. 4.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On uniQure

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in uniQure by 358.0% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,085 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 5,538 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in uniQure in the second quarter valued at about $117,000. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of uniQure in the 1st quarter worth $106,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in uniQure during the second quarter worth about $151,000. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp purchased a new position in uniQure during the first quarter worth approximately $152,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.83% of the company's stock.

About uniQure

uniQure N.V. develops treatments for patients suffering from rare and other devastating diseases. It offers HEMGENIX that has completed Phase III HOPE-B pivotal trial for the treatment of hemophilia B. The company also develops AMT-130, a gene therapy that is in Phase I/II clinical study for the treatment of Huntington's disease.

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