Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) Upgraded to “Buy” by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Friday.

AUPH has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from $9.50 to $9.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from $13.00 to $8.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from $12.00 to $10.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a buy rating and issued a $13.00 price target on shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, March 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $10.00.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of AUPH stock traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $5.10. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,696,503 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,382,709. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 4.99 and a current ratio of 5.50. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $5.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $7.11. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $4.71 and a 12-month high of $12.43.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.19) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by ($0.03). Aurinia Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 32.69% and a negative return on equity of 14.79%. The company had revenue of $45.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.00 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.18) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 58.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Aurinia Pharmaceuticals will post -0.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 95.9% during the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,673 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,798 shares during the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA lifted its stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 25,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 214,500 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,687,000 after purchasing an additional 2,100 shares during the period. HighMark Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the first quarter. HighMark Wealth Management LLC now owns 75,196 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $377,000 after purchasing an additional 2,197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 28,634 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 2,390 shares during the period. 36.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing therapies to treat various diseases with unmet medical need in the United States. It offers LUPKYNIS for the treatment of adult patients with active lupus nephritis. It has a collaboration and license agreement with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd.