Benitec Biopharma Limited (NASDAQ:BNTC) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Benitec Biopharma Limited (NASDAQ:BNTC) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the nine brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $27.00.

BNTC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Benitec Biopharma from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Evercore started coverage on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a report on Monday, April 20th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Guggenheim cut Benitec Biopharma from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Benitec Biopharma

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BNTC. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Benitec Biopharma by 44.5% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,937 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 904 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC boosted its position in Benitec Biopharma by 156.5% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 3,834 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 2,339 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Benitec Biopharma in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $79,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. purchased a new stake in Benitec Biopharma during the second quarter valued at approximately $80,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Benitec Biopharma by 2,255.8% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,879 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 6,587 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.19% of the company’s stock.

Benitec Biopharma Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BNTC opened at $13.22 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $454.11 million, a PE ratio of -11.60 and a beta of 0.25. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $11.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.81. Benitec Biopharma has a 1 year low of $9.85 and a 1 year high of $16.76.

Benitec Biopharma (NASDAQ:BNTC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.27) by $0.03. Equities research analysts expect that Benitec Biopharma will post -1.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Benitec Biopharma

Benitec Biopharma Ltd (NASDAQ: BNTC) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing gene-silencing therapies for serious human diseases. The company’s proprietary DNA-directed RNA interference (ddRNAi) platform is designed to enable sustained expression of small RNA molecules that specifically target and silence disease-causing genes. By integrating RNAi sequences directly into DNA constructs, ddRNAi aims to provide a long-term therapeutic effect from a single administration.

Benitec’s lead programs include development of ddRNAi candidates for chronic hepatitis B virus infection and for certain ocular conditions.