Bicara Therapeutics (NASDAQ:BCAX) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at BTIG Research

BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Bicara Therapeutics (NASDAQ:BCAX) in a report published on Thursday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $28.00 price objective on the stock.

Several other brokerages have also commented on BCAX. Mizuho raised Bicara Therapeutics to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $30.00 target price on shares of Bicara Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Bicara Therapeutics from $8.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Bicara Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $28.00.

Bicara Therapeutics Stock Up 8.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:BCAX opened at $17.95 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $983.30 million, a PE ratio of -8.01 and a beta of -0.79. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $16.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.12. Bicara Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $7.80 and a fifty-two week high of $19.71.

Bicara Therapeutics (NASDAQ:BCAX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported ($0.67) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.55) by ($0.12). As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Bicara Therapeutics will post -2.59 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Ryan Cohlhepp sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.68, for a total transaction of $233,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 189,141 shares in the company, valued at $3,533,153.88. This represents a 6.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider David Raben sold 5,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.45, for a total transaction of $101,475.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 35,497 shares in the company, valued at approximately $654,919.65. This represents a 13.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 127,297 shares of company stock valued at $2,371,916. 15.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Bicara Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BCAX. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in Bicara Therapeutics by 64.1% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,156 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,233 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of Bicara Therapeutics by 73.0% during the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 3,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,474 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in shares of Bicara Therapeutics by 419.3% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,788 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 3,866 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Bicara Therapeutics by 1,015.5% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 3,949 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 3,595 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey boosted its holdings in Bicara Therapeutics by 119.6% in the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 8,109 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 4,417 shares during the last quarter.

About Bicara Therapeutics

Bicara Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing novel neurohormone-based therapies for psychiatric and neurological disorders. The company’s research focuses on harnessing endogenous signaling pathways in the brain, with the goal of offering new treatment options for conditions that remain inadequately addressed by existing medications. Bicara applies proprietary peptide engineering and intranasal delivery platforms to optimize central nervous system uptake and therapeutic effect.

The company’s lead candidates include PST-001, an intranasal vasopressin-1A receptor antagonist in development for postpartum depression, and PST-002, an oxytocin receptor modulator being investigated for social anxiety and autism spectrum disorder.