Galapagos (NASDAQ:GLPG) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Galapagos NV (NASDAQ:GLPG)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $26.69, but opened at $25.90. Galapagos shares last traded at $26.08, with a volume of 147,448 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Leerink Partnrs raised Galapagos to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Galapagos from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of Galapagos in a research report on Monday, September 9th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Kepler Capital Markets cut shares of Galapagos from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Raymond James downgraded shares of Galapagos from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.75.

Galapagos Price Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $28.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.54.

Institutional Trading of Galapagos

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Primecap Management Co. CA increased its holdings in shares of Galapagos by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 720,240 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $17,848,000 after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares during the last quarter. Finepoint Capital LP grew its holdings in Galapagos by 2.8% during the third quarter. Finepoint Capital LP now owns 557,762 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $16,058,000 after purchasing an additional 15,000 shares during the last quarter. Stonepine Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Galapagos by 23.2% in the second quarter. Stonepine Capital Management LLC now owns 485,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $12,018,000 after purchasing an additional 91,366 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Galapagos by 5.3% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 341,639 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $8,466,000 after buying an additional 17,089 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in Galapagos by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 270,800 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $6,710,000 after buying an additional 4,300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 32.46% of the company’s stock.

Galapagos Company Profile

Galapagos NV, a biotechnology company, develops medicines focusing on oncology and immunology primarily in the United States and Europe. The company's pipeline products comprise GLPG3667 that has completed phase 1b trial; GLPG5101, a CD19 CAR-T product candidate manufactured at point-of-care, currently in Phase1/2 trial in relapsed/refractory non-hodgkin lymphoma; GLPG5201, a CD19 CAR-T product candidates manufactured at point-of-care, currently in phase 1/2 trial in replapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia; and GLPG5301, a BCMA CAR-T product candidate manufactured at point-of-care, currently in phase 1/2 in relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma.