Zai Lab (NASDAQ:ZLAB) Receives "Sell (D-)" Rating from Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• Zai Lab has been reaffirmed a "sell (D-)" rating by Weiss Ratings, highlighting concerns over the company's performance.
• The stock has experienced a 6.0% decline, trading at $26.35, with a market capitalization of $2.94 billion and a negative P/E ratio of -12.92.
• Despite the negative outlook from Weiss Ratings, some analysts, including Citigroup, maintain a "buy" rating with a target price increase to $69.00, indicating differing perspectives on Zai Lab’s potential.

Zai Lab (NASDAQ:ZLAB - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (d-)" rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at Weiss Ratings in a report released on Friday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and set a $69.00 target price (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Zai Lab in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen cut Zai Lab from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Zai Lab in a research note on Monday, August 25th. They set a "buy" rating and a $52.00 target price for the company. Finally, Leerink Partners set a $75.00 target price on Zai Lab and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Zai Lab presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $56.35.

Zai Lab Stock Down 6.0%

NASDAQ ZLAB traded down $1.67 during trading on Friday, hitting $26.35. The stock had a trading volume of 823,952 shares, compared to its average volume of 914,575. The company has a market capitalization of $2.94 billion, a PE ratio of -12.92 and a beta of 1.08. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $32.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $33.23. Zai Lab has a twelve month low of $23.82 and a twelve month high of $44.34.

Zai Lab (NASDAQ:ZLAB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.37) earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.37). The company had revenue of $109.98 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $125.66 million. Zai Lab had a negative return on equity of 27.32% and a negative net margin of 49.68%. Zai Lab has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Zai Lab will post -2.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Joshua L. Smiley bought 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $28.91 per share, with a total value of $289,100.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 86,604 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,503,721.64. This trade represents a 13.05% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Ying Du sold 46,387 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.47, for a total value of $1,645,346.89. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 536,962 shares in the company, valued at $19,046,042.14. This trade represents a 7.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 161,562 shares of company stock worth $5,650,256. 4.96% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Zai Lab

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zai Lab in the 3rd quarter worth about $331,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zai Lab during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,073,000. MPM Bioimpact LLC raised its holdings in shares of Zai Lab by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. MPM Bioimpact LLC now owns 833,659 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,128,000 after buying an additional 33,659 shares during the period. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Zai Lab during the 1st quarter valued at about $12,649,000. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Zai Lab by 29.0% during the 1st quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 93,645 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,384,000 after buying an additional 21,026 shares during the period. 41.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Zai Lab Company Profile

Zai Lab Limited develops and commercializes therapies to treat oncology, autoimmune disorders, infectious diseases, and neuroscience. Its commercial products include Zejula, an orally administered poly polymerase 1/2 inhibitor; Optune, a cancer therapy that uses electric fields tuned to specific frequencies to kill tumor cells; NUZYRA for acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections, and community acquired bacterial pneumonia; Qinlock to treat gastrointestinal stromal tumors, and VYVGART, a human IgG1 antibody fragment for myesthenia gravis.

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