Lazard Asset Management LLC Takes Position in Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:CNTA)

Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:CNTA) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 73,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,225,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Centessa Pharmaceuticals as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 1,414.9% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 5,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 4,952 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new position in Centessa Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $162,000. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 39.1% in the fourth quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 18,909 shares of the company’s stock worth $317,000 after acquiring an additional 5,316 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Centessa Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $320,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd lifted its holdings in Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 122.9% in the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 22,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $380,000 after acquiring an additional 12,506 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.01% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Centessa Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Arjun Goyal bought 417,646 shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $12.73 per share, for a total transaction of $5,316,633.58. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 462,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,888,707.05. This trade represents a 929.36% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Iqbal J. Hussain sold 2,080 shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.01, for a total transaction of $29,140.80. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 105,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,476,457.86. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 165,398 shares of company stock valued at $2,600,342 over the last quarter. Insiders own 7.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on CNTA shares. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price target on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $6.00 target price on the stock. Chardan Capital started coverage on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $30.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler started coverage on Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, March 31st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $38.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $27.00.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of CNTA opened at $12.26 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 21.52 and a quick ratio of 21.52. Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc has a 1-year low of $7.75 and a 1-year high of $19.09. The stock has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.01 and a beta of 1.53. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $13.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.56.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CNTA) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.20) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.35) by $0.15. Equities analysts forecast that Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc will post -1.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Centessa Pharmaceuticals

Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and delivers medicines for patients. Its products pipeline includes SerpinPC, an activated protein C inhibitor for the treatment of hemophilia A and B; and ORX750, an orally administered OX2R agonist for the treatment of narcolepsy and other sleep disorders.