Analysts Downgrade Intellia Therapeutics Price Target to $12
Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company have lowered their price target for Intellia Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NTLA) from $17.00 to $12.00 in a report released on October 30, 2023. They currently hold an equal weight rating on the stock. This adjustment follows the release of several recent reports by other research firms regarding the company’s financial outlook.
In their analysis, HC Wainwright set a higher price target of $18.00 on October 30, while Barclays reduced its price target from $24.00 to $14.00, maintaining an “overweight” rating. Additionally, on September 6, Wall Street Zen upgraded Intellia Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating. In contrast, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on October 8, indicating mixed sentiments among analysts.
Currently, twelve research analysts have rated Intellia Therapeutics with a buy rating, seven have issued a hold rating, and three have given a sell rating. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “hold” and an average target price of $20.39.
Financial Performance and Earnings Report
Intellia Therapeutics recently announced its quarterly earnings results on November 6, 2023. The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of ($0.92), which exceeded analysts’ consensus estimate of ($1.02) by $0.10. Despite this positive surprise, Intellia faced challenges, posting a negative net margin of 774.94% and a negative return on equity of 56.28%.
The firm reported revenue of $13.78 million for the quarter, which fell short of analysts’ expectations of $14.12 million. This represents a year-over-year increase of 51.6%, a notable improvement compared to the previous year’s quarter, where the company reported an EPS of ($1.34). Analysts project that Intellia Therapeutics will report an EPS of -$5.07 for the current fiscal year.
Insider Activity and Institutional Investments
In recent insider trading activity, Chief Accounting Officer Michael P. Dube sold 1,871 shares of Intellia’s stock on October 1, 2023. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.38, amounting to a total transaction of approximately $32,518. Following this sale, Dube retains 55,266 shares valued at around $960,523. This transaction represents a 3.27% decrease in his total ownership.
Conversely, Director William J. Chase purchased 100,000 shares on August 20, 2023, at an average cost of $10.03 per share, totaling $1,003,000. Following this acquisition, he owns 134,693 shares valued at approximately $1,350,971, marking an increase of 288.24% in his position. Company insiders hold about 3.10% of Intellia’s stock.
Institutional investors have also shown significant interest in Intellia Therapeutics. CWM LLC increased its stake by 4.7% during the third quarter, now owning 19,187 shares valued at $331,000 after acquiring an additional 856 shares. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake by 39.7%, possessing 3,263 shares worth $56,000 after buying 927 shares.
Further, Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position by 9.3%, holding 11,710 shares valued at $202,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. and HighTower Advisors LLC have also increased their stakes, contributing to institutional investors owning approximately 88.77% of Intellia Therapeutics.
Intellia Therapeutics focuses on developing genome editing technologies aimed at creating curative therapeutics. The company’s in vivo programs include NTLA-2001, which is undergoing Phase 1 clinical trials for transthyretin amyloidosis, NTLA-2002 for hereditary angioedema, and NTLA-3001 for alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency associated lung disease.
As the market continues to react to these developments, stakeholders will be closely monitoring Intellia Therapeutics for further updates on its financial performance and strategic direction.
