Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Analysts

Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Buy” by the nine research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $40.57.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Pliant Therapeutics from $48.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price target on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Leerink Partners initiated coverage on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, September 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $33.00 price objective on the stock.

Pliant Therapeutics Trading Up 1.4 %

NASDAQ:PLRX opened at $13.53 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $823.30 million, a PE ratio of -4.05 and a beta of 1.08. Pliant Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $10.22 and a 52-week high of $19.62. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $13.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.75. The company has a quick ratio of 10.26, a current ratio of 10.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pliant Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 13.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,478,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,827,000 after purchasing an additional 412,486 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Pliant Therapeutics by 4.6% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,959,088 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,991,000 after buying an additional 173,172 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Pliant Therapeutics by 221.2% in the second quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 27,557 shares of the company’s stock valued at $296,000 after buying an additional 18,977 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 536.3% during the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 45,891 shares of the company’s stock valued at $493,000 after acquiring an additional 38,679 shares during the period. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $734,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.30% of the company’s stock.

Pliant Therapeutics Company Profile

Pliant Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes novel therapies for the treatment of fibrosis and related diseases in the United States. The company's lead candidate is bexotegrast, an oral, small-molecule, dual selective inhibitor of avß6 and avß1 integrins, which is in phase 2b trials for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and in phase 2a trial for primary sclerosing cholangitis.