Liquidia (NASDAQ:LQDA) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Shares of Liquidia Co. (NASDAQ:LQDA) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $14.74, but opened at $14.38. Liquidia shares last traded at $14.50, with a volume of 53,504 shares.

The company reported ($0.46) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.38) by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $2.92 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.60 million. Liquidia had a negative return on equity of 163.21% and a negative net margin of 765.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Liquidia in a report on Friday, December 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $20.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on Liquidia from $19.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $29.00 target price on shares of Liquidia in a report on Thursday. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on Liquidia from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $26.63.

Insider Activity at Liquidia

In other Liquidia news, CFO Michael Kaseta sold 23,370 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.78, for a total value of $275,298.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 401,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,732,673.90. The trade was a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Rajeev Saggar sold 6,249 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.78, for a total value of $73,613.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 270,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,185,170.64. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 71,245 shares of company stock valued at $843,326 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 30.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Liquidia during the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Liquidia by 35.0% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,632 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 1,719 shares during the period. Walleye Trading LLC raised its stake in shares of Liquidia by 54.7% during the 3rd quarter. Walleye Trading LLC now owns 13,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,000 after purchasing an additional 4,670 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Liquidia during the 4th quarter valued at $142,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Liquidia during the 4th quarter valued at $154,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.54% of the company’s stock.

Liquidia Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.47 and a beta of 0.07. The business has a 50 day moving average of $14.73 and a 200-day moving average of $12.14.

Liquidia Company Profile

Liquidia Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, and commercializes various products for unmet patient needs in the United States. Its lead product candidates include YUTREPIA, an inhaled dry powder formulation of treprostinil for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease (PH-ILD).