Legend Biotech Corporation Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:LEGN) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Legend Biotech Corporation Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:LEGN) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $58.3077.

LEGN has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Legend Biotech from $50.00 to $49.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Legend Biotech in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $21.00 price objective (down from $62.00) on shares of Legend Biotech in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut shares of Legend Biotech from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $24.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of Legend Biotech in a report on Tuesday, March 10th.

Legend Biotech Stock Up 7.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:LEGN opened at $28.51 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $19.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $22.86. Legend Biotech has a twelve month low of $16.24 and a twelve month high of $45.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.27 billion, a PE ratio of -35.64 and a beta of 0.29.

Legend Biotech (NASDAQ:LEGN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 11th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.17) by $0.18. Legend Biotech had a negative net margin of 28.86% and a negative return on equity of 21.93%. The firm had revenue of $306.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $310.21 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.07 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 64.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Legend Biotech will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Legend Biotech

In related news, CEO Ying Huang sold 9,936 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.77, for a total value of $87,138.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 247,438 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,170,031.26. This represents a 3.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Legend Biotech

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Candriam S.C.A. increased its holdings in Legend Biotech by 79.6% in the 1st quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 470,292 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,508,000 after acquiring an additional 208,477 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Legend Biotech in the 1st quarter worth approximately $338,000. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Legend Biotech by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 20,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $366,000 after acquiring an additional 607 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in Legend Biotech in the 1st quarter worth approximately $4,039,000. Finally, IFM Investors Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in Legend Biotech in the 1st quarter worth approximately $81,000. 70.89% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Legend Biotech

Legend Biotech (NASDAQ: LEGN) is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development and commercialization of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapies for oncology. Headquartered in Somerset, New Jersey, with research and development operations in Shanghai, the company leverages a global infrastructure to advance innovative cellular therapies. Legend Biotech pursues a strategy of strategic collaboration to extend its reach, most notably through its partnership with Janssen Biotech, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson.

The company’s lead asset, ciltacabtagene autoleucel (commercially marketed as Carvykti), is a B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)–directed CAR-T therapy for the treatment of relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.