Zenas BioPharma (NASDAQ:ZBIO) Shares Gap Up on Insider Buying Activity

Zenas BioPharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZBIO) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following insider buying activity. The stock had previously closed at $17.55, but opened at $19.05. Zenas BioPharma shares last traded at $18.4360, with a volume of 73,269 shares trading hands.

Specifically, CEO Leon O. Moulder, Jr. purchased 35,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.62 per share, with a total value of $616,700.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 1,786,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,470,007.18. This represents a 2.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Leon O. Moulder, Jr. purchased 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $18.02 per share, for a total transaction of $450,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,751,039 shares in the company, valued at $31,553,722.78. The trade was a 1.45% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on ZBIO shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Zenas BioPharma in a report on Friday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Zenas BioPharma from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of Zenas BioPharma in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Zenas BioPharma from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $48.00 price target on shares of Zenas BioPharma in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $44.14.

Zenas BioPharma Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of -2.37 and a beta of -0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 5.61 and a quick ratio of 5.61. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $22.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.14.

Zenas BioPharma (NASDAQ:ZBIO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 13th. The company reported ($1.10) EPS for the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Zenas BioPharma, Inc. will post -4.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Zenas BioPharma

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in Zenas BioPharma during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Zenas BioPharma by 34.5% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Zenas BioPharma during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Zenas BioPharma by 48.3% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 709 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Zenas BioPharma during the fourth quarter valued at about $95,000.

About Zenas BioPharma

Zenas BioPharma, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of novel therapies in oncology and infectious diseases. The company’s proprietary platform integrates structure-guided design, computational modeling and high-throughput screening to address challenging protein-protein interactions. Zenas BioPharma is advancing multiple preclinical and clinical-stage candidates aimed at providing new treatment options where current modalities may be limited by efficacy or safety concerns.

Founded in 2021 and headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Zenas BioPharma was built to streamline the drug discovery process from target identification through to IND-enabling studies.