Legend Biotech (NASDAQ:LEGN) Shares Gap Down After Analyst Downgrade

Legend Biotech Corporation Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:LEGN)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Monday after Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on the stock from $63.00 to $59.00. The stock had previously closed at $22.22, but opened at $20.55. Royal Bank Of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Legend Biotech shares last traded at $19.43, with a volume of 2,087,001 shares traded.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on LEGN. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Legend Biotech to $29.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Legend Biotech in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings lowered Legend Biotech from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Legend Biotech from $49.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Legend Biotech in a report on Monday, July 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at Legend Biotech

In other news, CEO Ying Huang sold 5,566 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.78, for a total value of $82,265.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 241,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,574,868.16. This represents a 2.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Legend Biotech

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in Legend Biotech by 171.9% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,047 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 662 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Legend Biotech by 310.7% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 3,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 2,632 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its position in shares of Legend Biotech by 1,730.3% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 3,569 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 3,374 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Legend Biotech during the second quarter valued at about $78,000. Finally, IFM Investors Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Legend Biotech in the first quarter valued at about $81,000. 70.89% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Legend Biotech Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a P/E ratio of -27.95 and a beta of 0.34. The company’s 50 day moving average is $28.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.40.

Legend Biotech (NASDAQ:LEGN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.01). Legend Biotech had a negative net margin of 21.98% and a negative return on equity of 24.92%. The firm had revenue of $305.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $306.51 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.07) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 56.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Legend Biotech Corporation Sponsored ADR will post -0.01 EPS for the current year.

About Legend Biotech

Legend Biotech (NASDAQ: LEGN) is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development and commercialization of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapies for oncology. Headquartered in Somerset, New Jersey, with research and development operations in Shanghai, the company leverages a global infrastructure to advance innovative cellular therapies. Legend Biotech pursues a strategy of strategic collaboration to extend its reach, most notably through its partnership with Janssen Biotech, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson.

The company’s lead asset, ciltacabtagene autoleucel (commercially marketed as Carvykti), is a B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)–directed CAR-T therapy for the treatment of relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.