Legend Biotech (NASDAQ:LEGN) Trading 6.8% Higher – Still a Buy?

Legend Biotech Corporation Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:LEGN)’s share price was up 6.8% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $23.64 and last traded at $23.78. Approximately 1,185,366 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 52% from the average session volume of 2,457,067 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.26.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LEGN. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Legend Biotech to $29.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Legend Biotech in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Legend Biotech from $64.00 to $63.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Legend Biotech in a report on Monday, July 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Legend Biotech from $31.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.00.

Legend Biotech Trading Up 4.9%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $29.33 and a 200 day moving average of $23.33. The firm has a market cap of $4.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -34.48 and a beta of 0.34.

Legend Biotech (NASDAQ:LEGN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $305.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $306.51 million. Legend Biotech had a negative return on equity of 24.92% and a negative net margin of 21.98%.The business’s revenue was up 56.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.07) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Legend Biotech Corporation Sponsored ADR will post -0.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Ying Huang sold 5,566 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.78, for a total transaction of $82,265.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 241,872 shares in the company, valued at $3,574,868.16. This trade represents a 2.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Legend Biotech

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in Legend Biotech by 6,774.9% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 371,728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,081,000 after buying an additional 366,321 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Legend Biotech during the 1st quarter valued at about $4,039,000. Casdin Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Legend Biotech in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,674,000. Eagle Health Investments LP bought a new position in shares of Legend Biotech in the 4th quarter valued at about $8,884,000. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. grew its position in shares of Legend Biotech by 79.6% during the 1st quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 470,292 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,508,000 after buying an additional 208,477 shares during the period. 70.89% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Legend Biotech Company Profile

Legend Biotech (NASDAQ: LEGN) is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development and commercialization of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapies for oncology. Headquartered in Somerset, New Jersey, with research and development operations in Shanghai, the company leverages a global infrastructure to advance innovative cellular therapies. Legend Biotech pursues a strategy of strategic collaboration to extend its reach, most notably through its partnership with Janssen Biotech, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson.

The company’s lead asset, ciltacabtagene autoleucel (commercially marketed as Carvykti), is a B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)–directed CAR-T therapy for the treatment of relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.