Rocket Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RCKT) Shares Up 9.3% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RCKT) traded up 9.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $4.68 and last traded at $4.6650. 2,394,610 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 12% from the average session volume of 2,725,978 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.27.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley set a $5.00 price objective on Rocket Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Lifesci Capital raised Rocket Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. TD Cowen upgraded Rocket Pharmaceuticals to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Wall Street Zen cut Rocket Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Rocket Pharmaceuticals to $3.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Rocket Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.79.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 9.6%

The company has a market capitalization of $508.11 million, a PE ratio of -2.33 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 6.38 and a current ratio of 6.38. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $3.99 and its 200 day moving average is $3.61.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RCKT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.38) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.04. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.62) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -2.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Gaurav Shah sold 12,279 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.31, for a total value of $40,643.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,052,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,482,268.95. This trade represents a 1.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Martin Wilson sold 12,253 shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.31, for a total value of $40,557.43. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 683,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,261,974.56. This trade represents a 1.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 29,415 shares of company stock valued at $97,398 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 24.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rocket Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Prudential Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its holdings in Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 94.4% during the 2nd quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 12,202 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 5,926 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new stake in Rocket Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Rocket Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Rocket Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. 98.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing gene therapies for rare, inherited pediatric diseases. The company employs a proprietary adeno-associated virus (AAV) and lentiviral vector platform to deliver functional copies of genes in patients with genetic deficiencies. Its programs target a spectrum of disorders, including Fanconi anemia, leukocyte adhesion deficiency type I and Danon disease, with the goal of delivering one-time treatments that address the underlying causes of disease rather than merely managing symptoms.

The company’s pipeline comprises multiple product candidates in various stages of development.