JPMorgan Chase & Co. Boosts Stock Holdings in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc $AUPH

JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 533,290 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 94,941 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals were worth $5,893,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new position in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at approximately $48,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth approximately $91,000. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $107,000. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $137,000. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $136,000. 36.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kevin Tang bought 516,439 shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $13.99 per share, for a total transaction of $7,224,981.61. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 11,845,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $165,724,686.61. The trade was a 4.56% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 12.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on AUPH shares. Leerink Partners lowered Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $15.00 to $16.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.25.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 6.0%

NASDAQ:AUPH opened at $14.82 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 5.25, a quick ratio of 4.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc has a twelve month low of $6.82 and a twelve month high of $16.54. The company has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a PE ratio of 7.13 and a beta of 1.53. The company’s 50 day moving average is $14.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.27.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $1.32. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 101.46% and a return on equity of 27.47%. The business had revenue of $77.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $74.70 million. Analysts anticipate that Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc will post 0.11 EPS for the current year.

About Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for autoimmune diseases. The company’s proprietary molecule, voclosporin, is designed to selectively inhibit calcineurin and reduce inflammation associated with autoimmune responses. Aurinia operates research and development facilities in Canada and the United States, leveraging collaborations with academic institutions and contract research organizations to advance its clinical pipeline.

The company’s lead product, voclosporin (marketed as LUPKYNIS), received approval from the U.S.