GRAIL (NASDAQ:GRAL) Shares Gap Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

GRAIL, Inc. (NASDAQ:GRAL) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $83.39, but opened at $88.57. GRAIL shares last traded at $86.5930, with a volume of 170,680 shares.

The company reported ($2.46) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($3.40) by $0.94. The business had revenue of $36.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.83 million. GRAIL had a negative return on equity of 15.42% and a negative net margin of 286.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GRAL has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group set a $75.00 price target on shares of GRAIL in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of GRAIL from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of GRAIL in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Guggenheim upgraded shares of GRAIL from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.00.

Insider Activity at GRAIL

In related news, President Joshua J. Ofman sold 81,385 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.50, for a total value of $5,086,562.50. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 396,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,799,812.50. This represents a 17.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert P. Ragusa sold 7,239 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.88, for a total value of $498,622.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 727,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,102,485.44. This represents a 0.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 117,497 shares of company stock worth $7,515,436 over the last quarter. 1.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On GRAIL

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in GRAIL by 21.4% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 34,195 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,758,000 after purchasing an additional 6,032 shares during the period. Scientech Research LLC acquired a new position in shares of GRAIL in the 1st quarter valued at about $644,000. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors purchased a new position in GRAIL in the second quarter valued at approximately $233,000. Dakota Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of GRAIL in the second quarter worth $2,656,000. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. raised its stake in shares of GRAIL by 39.1% in the 2nd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 44,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,288,000 after acquiring an additional 12,500 shares during the period.

GRAIL Stock Performance

The company’s fifty day moving average is $66.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $48.21. The firm has a market cap of $2.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.85 and a beta of 4.31.

About GRAIL

GRAIL, Inc operates as a commercial-stage healthcare company, which engages in the development of a technology for early detection of cancer. It utilizes machine learning, software, and automation to detect and identify multiple deadly cancer types in earlier stages. The company was founded by Jeffrey T.