Kezar Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:KZR) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Kezar Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:KZR) has been given a consensus rating of “Reduce” by the six analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $6.00.

Kezar Life Sciences Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:KZR opened at $7.39 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $7.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $6.49. Kezar Life Sciences has a 52 week low of $3.53 and a 52 week high of $7.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.46 million, a P/E ratio of -0.96 and a beta of 0.40.

Kezar Life Sciences (NASDAQ:KZR) last announced its earnings results on Friday, March 27th. The company reported ($1.99) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.39) by ($0.60). On average, analysts expect that Kezar Life Sciences will post -2.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kezar Life Sciences

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KZR. BML Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kezar Life Sciences by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. BML Capital Management LLC now owns 720,787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,811,000 after purchasing an additional 85,604 shares during the last quarter. Nantahala Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kezar Life Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,741,000. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kezar Life Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,441,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in Kezar Life Sciences by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 131,285 shares of the company’s stock valued at $826,000 after buying an additional 15,400 shares during the period. Finally, Peapod Lane Capital LLC raised its holdings in Kezar Life Sciences by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Peapod Lane Capital LLC now owns 125,773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $491,000 after buying an additional 10,650 shares during the period. 67.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kezar Life Sciences Company Profile

Kezar Life Sciences is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of novel small-molecule therapies that modulate the innate immune system. The company’s research centers on selective inhibition of the immunoproteasome, a key protein complex involved in antigen processing and secretion of inflammatory cytokines. By targeting this pathway, Kezar aims to address unmet medical needs in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases with high specificity and a favorable safety profile.

The company’s lead development candidate, KZR-616, is a selective immunoproteasome inhibitor being evaluated in multiple clinical trials for autoimmune conditions such as systemic lupus erythematosus, lupus nephritis, polymyositis and dermatomyositis.