Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) Shares Down 9.8% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) fell 9.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $14.65 and last traded at $14.6530. 723,876 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 32% from the average session volume of 1,058,789 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.25.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings raised Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Aurinia Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $17.25.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 4.76 and a current ratio of 5.25. The company has a market capitalization of $1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.02 and a beta of 1.44.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The biotechnology company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $77.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $76.98 million. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 28.80% and a net margin of 99.97%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc will post 0.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Aurinia Pharmaceuticals news, Director Kevin Tang purchased 516,439 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.99 per share, for a total transaction of $7,224,981.61. Following the acquisition, the director owned 11,845,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $165,724,686.61. The trade was a 4.56% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 12.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 25.9% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 6,407 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $102,000 after acquiring an additional 1,318 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC raised its holdings in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 15,643 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $250,000 after acquiring an additional 1,765 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 30,270 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $483,000 after buying an additional 2,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 16,543 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 2,225 shares during the last quarter. 36.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical?stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for autoimmune diseases. The company’s proprietary molecule, voclosporin, is designed to selectively inhibit calcineurin and reduce inflammation associated with autoimmune responses. Aurinia operates research and development facilities in Canada and the United States, leveraging collaborations with academic institutions and contract research organizations to advance its clinical pipeline.

The company’s lead product, voclosporin (marketed as LUPKYNIS), received approval from the U.S.