Aura Biosciences (NASDAQ:AURA) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Aura Biosciences (NASDAQ:AURA) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on AURA. Leerink Partners set a $17.00 target price on shares of Aura Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Aura Biosciences from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, HC Wainwright reduced their price target on shares of Aura Biosciences from $24.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.50.

Aura Biosciences Price Performance

Shares of AURA stock opened at $7.68 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $7.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.77. Aura Biosciences has a one year low of $4.73 and a one year high of $9.53. The firm has a market cap of $796.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.39 and a beta of 0.40.

Aura Biosciences (NASDAQ:AURA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.48) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.38) by ($0.10). On average, research analysts anticipate that Aura Biosciences will post -1.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Aura Biosciences

In other Aura Biosciences news, insider Anthony S. Gibney sold 12,824 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.42, for a total value of $82,330.08. Following the transaction, the insider owned 265,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,703,572.68. The trade was a 4.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Aura Biosciences

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in shares of Aura Biosciences in the first quarter valued at about $137,000. Invesco Ltd. acquired a new position in Aura Biosciences during the 2nd quarter worth about $76,000. Nantahala Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Aura Biosciences by 67.1% during the 2nd quarter. Nantahala Capital Management LLC now owns 2,117,697 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,257,000 after buying an additional 850,000 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Aura Biosciences by 31.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 84,558 shares of the company’s stock worth $529,000 after acquiring an additional 20,065 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Aura Biosciences during the 2nd quarter worth about $102,000. Institutional investors own 96.75% of the company’s stock.

About Aura Biosciences

Aura Biosciences is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel virus‐like particle (VLP) therapies for the treatment of cancer. By combining proprietary VLP technology with photoactivatable dyes, Aura aims to deliver highly selective photodynamic therapies that target and destroy tumor cells while sparing healthy tissue. The company’s platform is designed to address solid tumors in both ophthalmic and non‐ophthalmic settings, leveraging precision activation via near‐infrared light to induce localized tumor cell apoptosis and stimulate anti‐tumor immune responses.

The lead product candidate, AU-011, is being evaluated in patients with choroidal melanoma, a rare but potentially sight-threatening eye cancer.