MoonLake Immunotherapeutics (NASDAQ:MLTX) Stock Price Up 18.2% – Still a Buy?

Shares of MoonLake Immunotherapeutics (NASDAQ:MLTX) shot up 18.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday. The company traded as high as $12.99 and last traded at $12.5830. Approximately 488,967 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 1,506,469 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.65.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Leerink Partners upped their price target on MoonLake Immunotherapeutics from $24.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings raised MoonLake Immunotherapeutics from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of MoonLake Immunotherapeutics in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of MoonLake Immunotherapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 27th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of MoonLake Immunotherapeutics in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.50.

MoonLake Immunotherapeutics Trading Down 4.0%

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 12.56 and a current ratio of 12.56. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $12.92 and a 200-day moving average of $16.48.

MoonLake Immunotherapeutics (NASDAQ:MLTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported ($0.84) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.91) by $0.07. As a group, equities analysts predict that MoonLake Immunotherapeutics will post -3.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MoonLake Immunotherapeutics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MLTX. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in MoonLake Immunotherapeutics by 64.7% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,451,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,304,000 after buying an additional 1,355,640 shares during the period. Weiss Asset Management LP boosted its position in MoonLake Immunotherapeutics by 413.1% in the 1st quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP now owns 1,708,328 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,843,000 after buying an additional 1,375,367 shares during the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. grew its stake in shares of MoonLake Immunotherapeutics by 509.0% during the first quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 818,126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,250,000 after acquiring an additional 683,797 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of MoonLake Immunotherapeutics by 5,255.8% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 724,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,510,000 after acquiring an additional 711,261 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of MoonLake Immunotherapeutics by 105.8% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 276,772 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,159,000 after acquiring an additional 142,300 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.85% of the company’s stock.

About MoonLake Immunotherapeutics

MoonLake Immunotherapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies for inflammatory and immunological diseases. The company is advancing medicines designed to address conditions in which the immune system contributes to chronic inflammation and tissue damage.

Its lead product candidate is sonelokimab, an investigational Nanobody-based therapy designed to selectively inhibit interleukin-17A and interleukin-17F, two cytokines involved in inflammatory disease.