Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC) Stock Rating Upgraded by BTIG Research

Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC) was upgraded by BTIG Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on ALEC. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Alector in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Cowen lowered Alector to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Alector from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut Alector from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, November 28th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered shares of Alector from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $3.25.

Alector Price Performance

NASDAQ:ALEC opened at $1.69 on Monday. Alector has a 12-month low of $0.87 and a 12-month high of $3.40. The firm has a market cap of $184.46 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.58 and a beta of 0.61. The company’s 50-day moving average is $1.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1.95. The company has a current ratio of 3.76, a quick ratio of 3.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.34) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.08. The business had revenue of $3.26 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.49 million. Alector had a negative net margin of 156.03% and a negative return on equity of 123.02%. Research analysts expect that Alector will post -1.88 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Neil Lindsay Berkley sold 37,261 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.12, for a total value of $41,732.32. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 374,309 shares in the company, valued at $419,226.08. This trade represents a 9.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sara Kenkare-Mitra sold 41,687 shares of Alector stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.12, for a total value of $46,689.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 501,652 shares in the company, valued at $561,850.24. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 196,104 shares of company stock worth $220,064 over the last three months. 9.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alector

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Alector by 25.9% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,334,032 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,641,000 after acquiring an additional 274,341 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in Alector by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 256,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,000 after purchasing an additional 11,618 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Alector by 39.8% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,440,661 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,768,000 after purchasing an additional 410,205 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Alector in the 1st quarter valued at $126,000. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its position in Alector by 26.7% in the second quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 38,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 8,000 shares during the period. 85.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alector Company Profile

Alector is a clinical-stage biotechnology company headquartered in South San Francisco, California. Founded in 2013, the company is focused on discovering and developing immuno-neurology therapies that target the innate immune system to treat a range of neurodegenerative disorders. Alector’s approach aims to harness the body’s natural defense mechanisms to clear pathological proteins and restore neuronal function in conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal dementia.

The company’s pipeline includes multiple product candidates in both preclinical and clinical stages, with lead programs AL001 and AL002 advancing in frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer’s disease studies.