Aura Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:AURA) Given Consensus Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Aura Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:AURA) have been assigned an average rating of “Buy” from the eight analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $22.00.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. HC Wainwright raised Aura Biosciences to a “buy” rating and set a $22.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Aura Biosciences in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective on shares of Aura Biosciences in a research note on Friday, May 23rd.

Aura Biosciences Stock Up 6.6%

Shares of Aura Biosciences stock opened at $6.50 on Friday. Aura Biosciences has a 12-month low of $4.35 and a 12-month high of $12.38. The company has a market capitalization of $326.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.76 and a beta of 0.42. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $5.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.12.

Aura Biosciences (NASDAQ:AURA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The company reported ($0.55) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.47) by ($0.08). On average, sell-side analysts expect that Aura Biosciences will post -1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aura Biosciences

In other news, insider Anthony S. Gibney acquired 50,000 shares of Aura Biosciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $4.90 per share, for a total transaction of $245,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 58,452 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,414.80. The trade was a 591.58% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Conor Kilroy sold 7,162 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.49, for a total value of $39,319.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 179,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $984,428.37. The trade was a 3.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,578 shares of company stock worth $52,067 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Aura Biosciences

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new position in shares of Aura Biosciences in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Aura Biosciences by 5,766.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 9,573 shares during the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Aura Biosciences in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $87,000. ProShare Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Aura Biosciences in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $127,000. Finally, Harvest Investment Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Aura Biosciences during the fourth quarter valued at $133,000. 96.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Aura Biosciences

Aura Biosciences, Inc, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, develops precision immunotherapies to treat a range of solid tumors. The company's proprietary platform enables the targeting of a range of solid tumors using virus-like particles conjugated with drugs or loaded with nucleic acids to create virus-like drug conjugates.