KalVista Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:KALV) Downgraded by JonesTrading to Hold

JonesTrading downgraded shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:KALV) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

KALV has been the subject of several other reports. Wall Street Zen lowered KalVista Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. HC Wainwright upped their price target on KalVista Pharmaceuticals from $27.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Citizens Jmp cut KalVista Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on KalVista Pharmaceuticals from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, KalVista Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.60.

KalVista Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KALV opened at $26.66 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a PE ratio of -6.75 and a beta of -0.40. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $18.45 and its 200-day moving average is $15.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.18, a quick ratio of 7.21 and a current ratio of 7.22. KalVista Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $9.83 and a 52 week high of $26.76.

Insider Buying and Selling at KalVista Pharmaceuticals

In other news, CEO Benjamin L. Palleiko sold 9,550 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.22, for a total value of $193,101.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 462,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,353,306.94. The trade was a 2.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, major shareholder Venrock Healthcare Capital Par sold 39,986 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.28, for a total value of $730,944.08. Following the sale, the insider owned 5,089,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $93,033,391.12. The trade was a 0.78% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 263,969 shares of company stock valued at $4,536,178. 4.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of KalVista Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at $646,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 13.7% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 24,325 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 2,939 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 3.7% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 339,936 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,923,000 after purchasing an additional 12,263 shares during the period. Creative Planning increased its stake in KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 20.0% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 33,380 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $377,000 after purchasing an additional 5,573 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 54,376 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $615,000 after purchasing an additional 1,458 shares in the last quarter.

Key KalVista Pharmaceuticals News

Here are the key news stories impacting KalVista Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Chiesi Group agreed to acquire KalVista for about $1.9 billion and to buy shares for $27.00 in cash — the deal highlights Chiesi’s push into rare-disease/HAE treatment Ekterly and is the primary catalyst for the stock’s jump. Chiesi to buy KalVista in $1.9B deal
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction: shares surged roughly 38–39% on the takeover news and trading volume spiked well above average, reflecting investor demand to capture the cash takeover consideration. KalVista stock surges 39%
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading mechanics: trading in KALV was temporarily halted prior to the announcement for “news pending,” a routine step that precedes major corporate news and can amplify post-release moves. (Company/regulatory filings reflected the halt.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst view: Needham & Company reaffirmed a “hold” rating on KalVista — a reminder some analysts view the takeover price as fair or limited upside beyond the offer. Needham reaffirms hold
• Negative Sentiment: Litigation risk: multiple shareholder-alerts and law-firm investigations (Ademi LLP and Monteverde & Associates) have been announced questioning whether the $27.00 per-share deal is fair and whether fiduciary duties were met — these actions could delay closing, prompt a negotiated price change, or produce settlement costs. Ademi LLP shareholder alert Monteverde investigation

About KalVista Pharmaceuticals

KalVista Pharmaceuticals is a clinical‐stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of small‐molecule protease inhibitors for orphan and specialty disease indications. The firm’s scientific platform centers on selective inhibition of plasma kallikrein, a serine protease implicated in disorders characterized by vascular leak, edema and inflammation. KalVista’s approach leverages oral and intravitreal delivery formats to target both systemic and ophthalmic conditions.

The company’s lead programs include an oral plasma kallikrein inhibitor in clinical trials for the acute treatment of hereditary angioedema (HAE) attacks and an intravitreal kallikrein inhibitor being evaluated for diabetic macular edema.