Benitec Biopharma (NASDAQ:BNTC) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.03 EPS

Benitec Biopharma (NASDAQ:BNTC) posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The biotechnology company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($0.03), Zacks reports.

Benitec Biopharma Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of BNTC traded down $0.22 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $11.12. The company had a trading volume of 49,253 shares, compared to its average volume of 124,628. The stock has a market cap of $380.83 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.18 and a beta of 0.26. Benitec Biopharma has a 52 week low of $9.80 and a 52 week high of $17.15. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $12.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $13.16.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Benitec Biopharma news, Director Suvretta Capital Management, L acquired 77,387 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 29th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $13.44 per share, with a total value of $1,040,081.28. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 9,700,195 shares in the company, valued at $130,370,620.80. This trade represents a 0.80% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Over the last 90 days, insiders purchased 190,364 shares of company stock worth $2,442,105. Company insiders own 4.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Benitec Biopharma

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BNTC. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Benitec Biopharma during the first quarter valued at $597,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Benitec Biopharma by 77.6% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 415,211 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,859,000 after buying an additional 181,391 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. bought a new position in Benitec Biopharma in the 2nd quarter valued at about $80,000. Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in Benitec Biopharma by 11,114.0% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 20,858 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $244,000 after buying an additional 20,672 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Benitec Biopharma during the 2nd quarter worth about $127,000. 52.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citizens Jmp upped their target price on shares of Benitec Biopharma from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Benitec Biopharma from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 22nd. JMP Securities set a $22.00 target price on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, HC Wainwright set a $32.00 price target on Benitec Biopharma and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $26.25.

Benitec Biopharma Company Profile

Benitec Biopharma Ltd (NASDAQ: BNTC) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing gene-silencing therapies for serious human diseases. The company’s proprietary DNA-directed RNA interference (ddRNAi) platform is designed to enable sustained expression of small RNA molecules that specifically target and silence disease-causing genes. By integrating RNAi sequences directly into DNA constructs, ddRNAi aims to provide a long-term therapeutic effect from a single administration.

Benitec’s lead programs include development of ddRNAi candidates for chronic hepatitis B virus infection and for certain ocular conditions.