Emergent BioSolutions’ (EBS) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at HC Wainwright

HC Wainwright reiterated their buy rating on shares of Emergent BioSolutions (NYSE:EBS) in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $15.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Emergent BioSolutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th.

Emergent BioSolutions Stock Down 2.5 %

Emergent BioSolutions stock opened at $4.74 on Tuesday. Emergent BioSolutions has a 12 month low of $1.82 and a 12 month high of $15.10. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $7.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.61. The company has a current ratio of 2.88, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The firm has a market cap of $257.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.16 and a beta of 1.80.

Emergent BioSolutions (NYSE:EBS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by $0.40. The company had revenue of $194.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $254.67 million. Emergent BioSolutions had a negative return on equity of 9.91% and a negative net margin of 18.55%. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.77) EPS. Equities analysts predict that Emergent BioSolutions will post -0.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Emergent BioSolutions declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 31st that permits the company to repurchase $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the biopharmaceutical company to reacquire up to 19% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Emergent BioSolutions

In other Emergent BioSolutions news, Director Neal Franklin Fowler sold 35,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.83, for a total transaction of $204,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 101,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $589,413. This represents a 25.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Emergent BioSolutions

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in Emergent BioSolutions in the 3rd quarter worth $1,547,000. Oak Hill Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Emergent BioSolutions in the third quarter worth about $9,296,000. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Emergent BioSolutions by 361.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 39,308 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $329,000 after buying an additional 30,792 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Emergent BioSolutions by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 581,958 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,861,000 after buying an additional 25,776 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Emergent BioSolutions by 41.7% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 306,286 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,928,000 after acquiring an additional 90,113 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.40% of the company’s stock.

About Emergent BioSolutions

Emergent BioSolutions Inc, a life sciences company, provides preparedness and response solutions for accidental, deliberate, and naturally occurring public health threats in the United States. The company offers NARCAN Nasal Spray for the emergency treatment of known or suspected opioid overdose; Vaxchora vaccine for the prevention of cholera; Vivotif vaccine for oral administration for the prevention of typhoid fever; Anthrasil for the treatment of inhalational anthrax; BioThrax, an anthrax vaccine; CYFENDUS for post-exposure prophylaxis of disease following suspected or confirmed exposure to Bacillus anthracis; and Raxibacumab injection for the treatment and prophylaxis of inhalational anthrax.