Zai Lab (NASDAQ:ZLAB) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Zai Lab Limited Unsponsored ADR (NASDAQ:ZLAB) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $18.72, but opened at $19.51. Zai Lab shares last traded at $19.7080, with a volume of 120,248 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ZLAB has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Zai Lab in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Zai Lab in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $35.00 target price on the stock. Seven 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.30.

Zai Lab Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $2.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.02 and a beta of 0.83. The business’s 50 day moving average is $19.33 and its 200 day moving average is $28.23.

Zai Lab (NASDAQ:ZLAB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.33) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.28) by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $116.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $150.24 million. Zai Lab had a negative return on equity of 25.83% and a negative net margin of 46.83%. Sell-side analysts predict that Zai Lab Limited Unsponsored ADR will post -2.58 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zai Lab

In related news, insider Rafael Amado sold 10,787 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.43, for a total transaction of $188,017.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 52,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $913,175.13. This trade represents a 17.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 4.96% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Zai Lab

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Zai Lab by 214.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 13,771 shares of the company’s stock worth $498,000 after acquiring an additional 9,390 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zai Lab during the 1st quarter worth about $1,073,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Zai Lab during the third quarter worth approximately $331,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.65% of the company’s stock.

About Zai Lab

Zai Lab Ltd (NASDAQ: ZLAB) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the research, development, manufacturing and commercialization of innovative therapies. Headquartered in Shanghai, China, Zai Lab operates R&D centers in Asia and the United States and maintains commercial offices across Greater China, North America, Europe and Australia. The company’s end-to-end platform encompasses discovery biology, translational development, clinical research and global supply chain management.

The company’s marketed portfolio is anchored by Brukinsa (zanubrutinib), a next-generation Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitor approved for several B-cell malignancies.