Centessa Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CNTA – Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Stephens from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.
Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Centessa Pharmaceuticals from $40.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Centessa Pharmaceuticals from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research restated a “peer perform” rating on shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.00.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Centessa Pharmaceuticals
Centessa Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 44.0%
Centessa Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CNTA – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported ($0.48) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.38) by ($0.10). On average, equities analysts forecast that Centessa Pharmaceuticals will post -1.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other Centessa Pharmaceuticals news, insider Iqbal J. Hussain sold 38,951 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.15, for a total value of $979,617.65. Following the sale, the insider owned 57,645 shares in the company, valued at $1,449,771.75. This represents a 40.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Gregory M. Weinhoff sold 73,196 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.33, for a total value of $1,927,250.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 65,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,735,805.25. The trade was a 52.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 349,073 shares of company stock valued at $9,429,412 over the last 90 days. 7.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centessa Pharmaceuticals
A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNTA. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 34.7% during the 4th quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 14,555,555 shares of the company’s stock valued at $364,034,000 after purchasing an additional 3,747,475 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its holdings in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 11,281,741 shares of the company’s stock valued at $282,156,000 after purchasing an additional 1,246,741 shares during the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 24.1% in the fourth quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 5,377,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,480,000 after purchasing an additional 1,045,750 shares during the last quarter. Siren L.L.C. raised its position in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 24.8% in the fourth quarter. Siren L.L.C. now owns 4,027,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $100,728,000 after purchasing an additional 800,000 shares during the period. Finally, Commodore Capital LP lifted its stake in shares of Centessa Pharmaceuticals by 39.3% during the 2nd quarter. Commodore Capital LP now owns 3,298,289 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,340,000 after buying an additional 930,711 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.01% of the company’s stock.
Centessa Pharmaceuticals News Summary
Here are the key news stories impacting Centessa Pharmaceuticals this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Eli Lilly agreed to buy Centessa for $38 per share in cash plus a potential contingent value right (CVR) worth up to $9 per share, valuing the deal at roughly $6.3B up front and up to $7.8B including milestones; the transaction is framed as an expansion of Lilly’s neuroscience/sleep‑medicine pipeline. Eli Lilly to buy Centessa Pharma in $6.3 billion deal
- Positive Sentiment: Deal terms include the $38 cash upfront plus CVR milestones (up to $9) — investors are pricing some or all of the CVR into CNTA shares, which helps explain the stock trading above the $38 cash figure. Eli Lilly to acquire Centessa in $6.3B deal to expand neuroscience portfolio
- Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity: large jump in call buying (nearly 3,000 calls traded, a ~472% spike vs. normal), signaling short‑term bullish speculation or hedging around the deal news.
- Neutral Sentiment: Analysts have mostly left ratings unchanged (Wolfe Research “peer perform”, Needham “hold”), suggesting the deal changes valuation more than near‑term fundamentals. Analyst coverage updates
- Neutral Sentiment: Trading metrics: unusually high share volume and CNTA trading near its 12‑month high, driven by the acquisition announcement and attendant positioning flows.
- Negative Sentiment: Shareholder litigation/investigations have been filed or announced (Ademi Firm and Halper Sadeh LLC) alleging Centessa shareholders may not be getting a fair price, which could lead to legal review, delay or pressure on deal terms. Shareholder Alert: The Ademi Firm investigates whether Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc is obtaining a Fair Price for Public Shareholders CNTA Stock Alert: Halper Sadeh LLC is Investigating Whether Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc is Obtaining a Fair Price for its Shareholders
About Centessa Pharmaceuticals
Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc is a global clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative therapies across multiple disease areas. The company operates a modular R&D network, bringing together a portfolio of independent, specialist research entities under a single corporate umbrella. This structure is designed to accelerate decision‐making and resource allocation while leveraging deep scientific expertise in each therapeutic domain.
Centessa’s pipeline spans oncology, immunology, neuroscience, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, as well as rare genetic disorders.
Further Reading
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