Kura Oncology (NASDAQ:KURA) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Kura Oncology, Inc. (NASDAQ:KURA)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $8.55, but opened at $7.93. Kura Oncology shares last traded at $8.32, with a volume of 1,152,847 shares.

The company reported ($0.92) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by ($0.50). Kura Oncology had a negative net margin of 208.48% and a negative return on equity of 65.42%. The business had revenue of $17.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.71 million.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on KURA. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 target price (up from $36.00) on shares of Kura Oncology in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Leerink Partners set a $20.00 price target on Kura Oncology and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Zacks Research upgraded Kura Oncology from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of Kura Oncology in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Kura Oncology in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kura Oncology currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $28.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kura Oncology news, insider Francis Burrows sold 23,726 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.78, for a total value of $232,040.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 33,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $329,928.30. This represents a 41.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Mollie Leoni sold 8,180 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.46, for a total value of $69,202.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 267,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,261,138.04. This trade represents a 2.97% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 59,794 shares of company stock worth $537,176. 6.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kura Oncology

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Kura Oncology by 0.9% during the third quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 119,935 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,061,000 after buying an additional 1,039 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in shares of Kura Oncology by 115.3% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,398 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,284 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Kura Oncology by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 19,577 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,000 after acquiring an additional 1,375 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in Kura Oncology by 59.9% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 1,553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Kura Oncology by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 22,889 shares of the company’s stock worth $238,000 after purchasing an additional 1,682 shares during the last quarter.

Kura Oncology Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 5.12 and a quick ratio of 5.12. The company has a market capitalization of $717.90 million, a PE ratio of -3.33 and a beta of 0.22. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.39.

About Kura Oncology

Kura Oncology, Inc (NASDAQ: KURA) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of targeted oncology therapies. Headquartered in La Jolla, California, the company leverages expertise in molecular biology and precision medicine to identify key drivers of cancer growth and design small-molecule inhibitors that block those pathways. Kura’s research platform integrates genomic insights with medicinal chemistry to advance candidates against well-validated targets in solid tumors and hematologic malignancies.

The company’s lead clinical candidate, tipifarnib, is a farnesyltransferase inhibitor being evaluated for the treatment of HRAS-mutant head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and various non-small cell lung cancers.