Deutsche Bank AG Increases Position in Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX)

Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX) by 66.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,551,865 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,017,500 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG’s holdings in Pliant Therapeutics were worth $33,608,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PLRX. Silverarc Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth about $17,326,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. bought a new stake in Pliant Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,556,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Pliant Therapeutics by 300.8% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 197,251 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,598,000 after buying an additional 148,039 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Pliant Therapeutics by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 547,297 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,206,000 after acquiring an additional 91,131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. raised its stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 900,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,854,000 after acquiring an additional 66,888 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PLRX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Pliant Therapeutics from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Pliant Therapeutics from $4.00 to $3.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Pliant Therapeutics from $4.00 to $1.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered Pliant Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $13.31.

Pliant Therapeutics Stock Performance

Pliant Therapeutics stock opened at $1.38 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 10.26, a quick ratio of 10.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a market cap of $84.71 million, a P/E ratio of -0.41 and a beta of 1.43. Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $1.10 and a 1-year high of $16.52. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $1.47 and a 200-day moving average of $7.67.

Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 3rd. The company reported ($0.82) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.99) by $0.17. Sell-side analysts expect that Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. will post -3.64 EPS for the current year.

Pliant Therapeutics Profile

Pliant Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes novel therapies for the treatment of fibrosis and related diseases in the United States. The company's lead candidate is bexotegrast, an oral, small-molecule, dual selective inhibitor of avß6 and avß1 integrins, which is in phase 2b trials for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and in phase 2a trial for primary sclerosing cholangitis.