Renaissance Technologies LLC Acquires 73,700 Shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc $AUPH

Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) by 4.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,663,835 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 73,700 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 1.29% of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals worth $24,658,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 15.5% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 14,065 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 1,883 shares in the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. increased its position in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 49.0% during the first quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. now owns 26,717 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $396,000 after acquiring an additional 8,784 shares in the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 411.9% during the first quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,471 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 2,793 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 1.9% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 335,775 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,976,000 after acquiring an additional 6,422 shares during the period. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth $3,111,000. Institutional investors own 36.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CEO Kevin Tang bought 206,005 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $15.28 per share, for a total transaction of $3,147,756.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 13,044,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,313,939.68. The trade was a 1.60% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders bought a total of 814,606 shares of company stock worth $12,455,129 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 10.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AUPH has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Zacks Research lowered Aurinia Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.33.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of AUPH opened at $15.18 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 5.55, a quick ratio of 5.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc has a 12 month low of $8.84 and a 12 month high of $19.25. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.00 and a beta of 1.41.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH) (TSE:AUP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.07. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 99.97% and a return on equity of 26.62%. The firm had revenue of $77.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $76.98 million. Research analysts forecast that Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc will post 0.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.