Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Increases Stake in Liquidia Co. (NASDAQ:LQDA)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Liquidia Co. (NASDAQ:LQDA) by 13.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 172,172 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,171 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.20% of Liquidia worth $2,116,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Liquidia by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,557,296 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,834,000 after purchasing an additional 115,367 shares during the period. Whitefort Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of Liquidia by 119.8% in the third quarter. Whitefort Capital Management LP now owns 1,702,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,020,000 after buying an additional 927,546 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Liquidia by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 428,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,040,000 after acquiring an additional 38,313 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Liquidia by 855.3% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 235,393 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,354,000 after acquiring an additional 210,753 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Liquidia by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 188,584 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,218,000 after acquiring an additional 6,034 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.54% of the company’s stock.

Liquidia Stock Performance

LQDA stock opened at $14.51 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $15.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.51. The firm has a market cap of $1.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.90 and a beta of 0.07. Liquidia Co. has a 1 year low of $8.26 and a 1 year high of $16.81.

Liquidia (NASDAQ:LQDA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 19th. The company reported ($0.46) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.38) by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $2.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.60 million. Liquidia had a negative net margin of 765.38% and a negative return on equity of 163.21%. On average, research analysts predict that Liquidia Co. will post -1.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on LQDA shares. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Liquidia in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Liquidia in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $20.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 price target on shares of Liquidia in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Liquidia from $19.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $26.63.

Insider Transactions at Liquidia

In other news, insider Rajeev Saggar sold 2,445 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.00, for a total transaction of $31,785.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 267,943 shares in the company, valued at $3,483,259. This trade represents a 0.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Michael Kaseta sold 23,370 shares of Liquidia stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.78, for a total value of $275,298.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 401,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,732,673.90. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 71,245 shares of company stock worth $843,326 over the last ninety days. 30.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Liquidia

Liquidia Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, and commercializes various products for unmet patient needs in the United States. Its lead product candidates include YUTREPIA, an inhaled dry powder formulation of treprostinil for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease (PH-ILD).