ImmunityBio (NASDAQ:IBRX) Trading Up 6.7% Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of ImmunityBio, Inc. (NASDAQ:IBRX) were up 6.7% during trading on Monday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $10.98 and last traded at $10.44. Approximately 40,582,315 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 11% from the average daily volume of 45,466,496 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.78.

The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $38.29 million for the quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. BTIG Research raised their price objective on shares of ImmunityBio from $6.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of ImmunityBio from $5.00 to $7.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of ImmunityBio in a report on Monday, February 23rd. D. Boral Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $23.00 target price on shares of ImmunityBio in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of ImmunityBio in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, ImmunityBio currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $12.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Christobel Selecky sold 25,000 shares of ImmunityBio stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total value of $250,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Barry J. Simon sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.01, for a total transaction of $900,750.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,850,821 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,238,360.21. This represents a 2.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 501,967 shares of company stock valued at $4,466,412 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 69.48% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ImmunityBio

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Slow Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of ImmunityBio in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Truist Financial Corp bought a new position in ImmunityBio in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of ImmunityBio in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of ImmunityBio during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of ImmunityBio during the second quarter valued at $27,000. 8.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ImmunityBio Stock Down 4.2%

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $5.59 and a 200-day moving average of $3.49. The firm has a market cap of $10.28 billion, a P/E ratio of -26.32 and a beta of -0.03.

ImmunityBio Company Profile

ImmunityBio, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company specializing in the development of novel immunotherapies for cancer and infectious diseases. The company’s research platform centers on harnessing the power of the human immune system—through engineered T cells, natural killer (NK) cells, cytokine superagonists and viral-vectored vaccines—to target and eliminate diseased cells across a range of indications.

Among its lead assets is Anktiva (formerly known as N-803), an interleukin-15 superagonist designed to stimulate NK and T cell activity.