MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Saturday.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on MNKD. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $11.00 target price on shares of MannKind in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on MannKind in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $7.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MannKind in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $3.50 price target (down from $7.50) on shares of MannKind in a report on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of MannKind from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $9.21.

MannKind Stock Down 7.3%

NASDAQ:MNKD opened at $3.04 on Friday. MannKind has a twelve month low of $2.93 and a twelve month high of $6.51. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $5.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $936.62 million, a PE ratio of 152.08 and a beta of 0.84.

MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.05) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $111.96 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.85 million. MannKind had a negative return on equity of 11.12% and a net margin of 1.68%.The firm’s revenue was up 45.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.03 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that MannKind will post 0.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Michael Castagna sold 65,804 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.01, for a total value of $395,482.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,504,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,053,799.92. This represents a 2.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Stuart A. Tross sold 47,006 shares of MannKind stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.33, for a total transaction of $297,547.98. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 985,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,235,094.31. This represents a 4.55% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 154,926 shares of company stock worth $945,726 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MannKind

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Level Four Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MannKind by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,333 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $93,000 after buying an additional 1,925 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in MannKind by 1.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 162,217 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $871,000 after purchasing an additional 2,201 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in MannKind by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 200,763 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,138,000 after purchasing an additional 2,355 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its holdings in shares of MannKind by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 33,405 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $189,000 after purchasing an additional 2,404 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of MannKind by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 39,234 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $220,000 after purchasing an additional 2,443 shares in the last quarter. 49.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About MannKind

MannKind Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company specialized in the development and commercialization of inhaled therapeutic products. The company’s core business revolves around its proprietary Technosphere® drug‐delivery platform, which is designed to enable rapid absorption of small‐molecule drugs through pulmonary administration. MannKind’s lead product, Afrezza®, is an inhaled insulin therapy intended for adults with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, offering users a rapid‐acting alternative to traditional injectable insulins.

Afrezza received U.S.