Kodiak Sciences (NASDAQ:KOD) Stock Jumps 6.5% – Here’s Why

Kodiak Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ:KOD) shares were up 6.5% during mid-day trading on Monday. The company traded as high as $91.23 and last traded at $91.31. Approximately 357,764 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 1,142,722 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KOD has been the subject of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $112.00 price target on shares of Kodiak Sciences in a research report on Monday, September 28th. HC Wainwright upped their price objective on shares of Kodiak Sciences from $96.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Kodiak Sciences from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, October 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Kodiak Sciences in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Kodiak Sciences from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $104.71.

Kodiak Sciences Stock Up 7.9%

The stock has a market capitalization of $5.82 billion, a PE ratio of -22.07 and a beta of 2.03. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $53.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.37.

Kodiak Sciences (NASDAQ:KOD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported ($1.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.96) by ($0.09). On average, equities analysts forecast that Kodiak Sciences Inc. will post -3.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Bros. Advisors Lp Baker purchased 33,726 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 29th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $85.05 per share, with a total value of $2,868,396.30. Following the transaction, the director owned 20,191,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,717,262,750.70. This represents a 0.17% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders acquired 1,941,755 shares of company stock valued at $156,986,026. Corporate insiders own 44.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kodiak Sciences

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in KOD. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kodiak Sciences in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Westfuller Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kodiak Sciences during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. KBC Group NV bought a new position in shares of Kodiak Sciences during the first quarter valued at about $39,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Kodiak Sciences by 94.5% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,927 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 936 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers purchased a new position in Kodiak Sciences during the first quarter worth about $228,000. Institutional investors own 89.06% of the company’s stock.

Kodiak Sciences Company Profile

Kodiak Sciences Inc (NASDAQ: KOD) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing medicines for serious retinal diseases. The company’s research is centered on its Antibody Biopolymer Conjugate (ABC) platform, which is designed to combine antibody-based therapies with biopolymer technology to potentially extend the duration of treatment in the eye.

Kodiak’s lead programs have focused on ophthalmic diseases involving abnormal blood-vessel growth or leakage, including wet age-related macular degeneration, diabetic macular edema and retinal vein occlusion.