Iovance Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:IOVA) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:IOVA) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Monday,Zacks reports.

IOVA has been the subject of a number of other research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $15.00 target price for the company. HC Wainwright increased their price target on Iovance Biotherapeutics from $9.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Iovance Biotherapeutics from $6.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Iovance Biotherapeutics from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Iovance Biotherapeutics from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $13.20.

Iovance Biotherapeutics Stock Performance

IOVA opened at $14.58 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $11.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5.70. Iovance Biotherapeutics has a 52-week low of $1.76 and a 52-week high of $15.37.

Iovance Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:IOVA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.11) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.02. The company had revenue of $99.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.83 million. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 65.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.33) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Iovance Biotherapeutics will post -0.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Iovance Biotherapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC bought a new stake in shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics during the second quarter valued at approximately $6,406,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics by 100.0% during the second quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 818,913 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $3,407,000 after acquiring an additional 409,449 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics during the second quarter worth $2,726,000. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in Iovance Biotherapeutics during the second quarter valued at $531,000. Finally, Palo Alto Investors LP purchased a new position in Iovance Biotherapeutics during the second quarter valued at $22,032,229. 77.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Iovance Biotherapeutics

Iovance Biotherapeutics, Inc (NASDAQ: IOVA) is a biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing personalized cell therapies for patients with cancer. Its technology is based on tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), immune cells collected from a patient’s tumor, expanded outside the body, and reinfused to help attack cancer cells.

The company’s lead product, Amtagvi (lifileucel), is an autologous TIL therapy approved in the United States for certain adults with unresectable or metastatic melanoma that has progressed following prior treatment.