HC Wainwright Increases Earnings Estimates for ImmunityBio

ImmunityBio, Inc. (NASDAQ:IBRX) – Equities researchers at HC Wainwright raised their FY2027 EPS estimates for shares of ImmunityBio in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, October 15th. HC Wainwright analyst A. Maldonado now forecasts that the company will earn $0.10 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $0.07. HC Wainwright currently has a “Buy” rating and a $15.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for ImmunityBio’s current full-year earnings is ($0.44) per share.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on IBRX. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on ImmunityBio from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of ImmunityBio in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $16.00 price objective on shares of ImmunityBio in a research note on Wednesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ImmunityBio currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.00.

ImmunityBio Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of IBRX stock opened at $10.00 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $8.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $7.96. ImmunityBio has a 52 week low of $1.95 and a 52 week high of $12.43. The company has a market cap of $10.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.31 and a beta of 0.02.

ImmunityBio (NASDAQ:IBRX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.22) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $51.24 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $49.70 million.

Insider Activity

In other ImmunityBio news, Director Cheryl Cohen sold 81,056 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.50, for a total value of $851,088.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 100,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,053,244.50. This represents a 44.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Barry J. Simon sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.75, for a total transaction of $268,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,777,788 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,861,221. This trade represents a 0.89% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 66.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ImmunityBio

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Doliver Advisors LP boosted its position in ImmunityBio by 110.0% during the 3rd quarter. Doliver Advisors LP now owns 210,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,982,000 after acquiring an additional 110,000 shares during the period. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of ImmunityBio in the second quarter worth $1,287,000. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of ImmunityBio in the second quarter worth $2,207,000. SEB Asset Management AB acquired a new position in shares of ImmunityBio during the first quarter valued at $18,770,000. Finally, BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of ImmunityBio by 29.4% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 34,083,262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $298,399,000 after purchasing an additional 7,736,819 shares during the period. 8.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ImmunityBio News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting ImmunityBio this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The FDA expanded ANKTIVA’s label, when used with BCG, to include patients with BCG-unresponsive non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) who have papillary-only tumors. The approval now covers both papillary disease and carcinoma in situ (CIS), allowing ImmunityBio to address a broader patient population. FDA Expands ANKTIVA Approval
• Positive Sentiment: The broader indication could materially expand ANKTIVA’s addressable market and support additional sales growth by making the therapy available to BCG-unresponsive NMIBC patients with papillary-only tumors, rather than primarily focusing on CIS disease. Reports also described the regulatory decision as arriving months ahead of the expected deadline. FDA Expands ImmunityBio’s ANKTIVA Label
• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright reaffirmed its “Buy” rating and maintained a $15 price target, implying substantial upside from the stock’s referenced $10 level. The analyst support adds to the positive reaction to the regulatory announcement. ImmunityBio Stock Climbs
• Neutral Sentiment: Separate coverage noted increased fund interest in IBRX and that Johnson & Johnson remains alert for potential deals. These items may support takeover speculation, but no transaction or partnership was announced, so the impact is uncertain. Funds Raise Bets as J&J Looks for Deals

ImmunityBio Company Profile

ImmunityBio, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing immunotherapies designed to activate and strengthen the body’s immune system against cancer and infectious diseases. The company combines cytokine-based therapies, vaccines, cellular therapies and other immune-modulating technologies in an effort to create durable treatment responses.

Its lead product, ANKTIVA (nogapendekin alfa inbakicept-pmln), is an interleukin-15 receptor agonist immune stimulator.