Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD)

MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD) saw unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock investors purchased 6,849 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 66% compared to the typical daily volume of 4,126 call options.

MannKind Price Performance

MNKD traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $4.01. 1,002,179 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,559,426. MannKind has a fifty-two week low of $2.23 and a fifty-two week high of $6.51. The company has a market cap of $1.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -57.35 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $3.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3.94.

MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.03). MannKind had a negative net margin of 6.63% and a negative return on equity of 11.21%. The firm had revenue of $90.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $105.38 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.04 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that MannKind will post -0.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Steven B. Binder sold 16,940 shares of MannKind stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.29, for a total transaction of $55,732.60. Following the sale, the director owned 808,008 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,658,346.32. The trade was a 2.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MannKind

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MannKind by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 162,217 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $871,000 after acquiring an additional 2,201 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of MannKind by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 200,763 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,138,000 after acquiring an additional 2,355 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in shares of MannKind by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 33,405 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $189,000 after acquiring an additional 2,404 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in MannKind by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 39,234 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $220,000 after purchasing an additional 2,443 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC lifted its position in MannKind by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 209,479 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 2,777 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MNKD shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on MannKind from $3.50 to $4.75 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. HC Wainwright upped their price target on shares of MannKind from $8.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $11.00 price target on shares of MannKind and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of MannKind from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of MannKind in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $8.97.

MannKind Company Profile

MannKind Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of inhaled therapeutic products for endocrine and orphan lung diseases in the United States. It offers Afrezza, an inhaled insulin used to improve glycemic control in adults with diabetes, and the V-Go wearable insulin delivery device, which provides continuous subcutaneous infusion of insulin in adults. The company's product pipeline also includes Tyvaso DPI (Treprostinil), an inhalation powder for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension and pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease; MNKD-101, a nebulized formulation of clofazimine, for the treatment of severe chronic and recurrent pulmonary infections, including nontuberculous mycobacterial lung disease; MNKD-201, a dry-powder formulation of nintedanib, for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).