KalVista Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:KALV) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

KalVista Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:KALV) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Sunday.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on KalVista Pharmaceuticals from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. HC Wainwright increased their price target on shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals from $27.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Citizens Jmp decreased their price target on shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.60.

KalVista Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

KALV opened at $19.90 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $16.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $14.64. KalVista Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $9.23 and a 12-month high of $21.31. The company has a current ratio of 7.22, a quick ratio of 7.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.04 and a beta of -0.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Benjamin L. Palleiko sold 6,693 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.08, for a total transaction of $107,623.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 451,815 shares in the company, valued at $7,265,185.20. This represents a 1.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Venrock Healthcare Capital Par sold 39,986 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.28, for a total value of $730,944.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 5,089,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $93,033,391.12. The trade was a 0.78% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 248,009 shares of company stock worth $4,213,467. Insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 14,626 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $165,000 after purchasing an additional 818 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 47.0% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,041 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,292 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 54,376 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $615,000 after purchasing an additional 1,458 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 324,369 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,239,000 after buying an additional 2,402 shares during the period. Finally, Profund Advisors LLC raised its stake in KalVista Pharmaceuticals by 25.9% in the third quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 12,613 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $154,000 after buying an additional 2,593 shares in the last quarter.

About KalVista Pharmaceuticals

KalVista Pharmaceuticals is a clinical‐stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of small‐molecule protease inhibitors for orphan and specialty disease indications. The firm’s scientific platform centers on selective inhibition of plasma kallikrein, a serine protease implicated in disorders characterized by vascular leak, edema and inflammation. KalVista’s approach leverages oral and intravitreal delivery formats to target both systemic and ophthalmic conditions.

The company’s lead programs include an oral plasma kallikrein inhibitor in clinical trials for the acute treatment of hereditary angioedema (HAE) attacks and an intravitreal kallikrein inhibitor being evaluated for diabetic macular edema.