Zacks Research Downgrades Lyell Immunopharma (NASDAQ:LYEL) to Strong Sell

Lyell Immunopharma (NASDAQ:LYEL) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on LYEL. Wall Street Zen downgraded Lyell Immunopharma from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Lyell Immunopharma in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. HC Wainwright upgraded Lyell Immunopharma from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $20.00 to $45.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Citizens Jmp initiated coverage on Lyell Immunopharma in a report on Monday, March 9th. They issued a “market outperform” rating and a $34.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lyell Immunopharma has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $39.50.

Lyell Immunopharma Stock Up 5.2%

LYEL opened at $22.91 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $22.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.58. The company has a market capitalization of $534.03 million, a P/E ratio of -1.41 and a beta of -0.06. Lyell Immunopharma has a 52 week low of $7.65 and a 52 week high of $45.00.

Lyell Immunopharma (NASDAQ:LYEL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported ($7.68) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($2.15) by ($5.53). The firm had revenue of $0.01 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $0.02 million. Lyell Immunopharma had a negative return on equity of 90.52% and a negative net margin of 762,355.56%. Equities analysts anticipate that Lyell Immunopharma will post -0.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Lynn Seely sold 7,455 shares of Lyell Immunopharma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.39, for a total value of $174,372.45. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 74,266 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,737,081.74. This trade represents a 9.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Stephen J. Hill sold 1,236 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.39, for a total value of $28,910.04. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 17,795 shares in the company, valued at approximately $416,225.05. This trade represents a 6.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 11,310 shares of company stock worth $264,285. 22.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LYEL. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Lyell Immunopharma by 773.5% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 174,279 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after buying an additional 154,327 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in Lyell Immunopharma during the 2nd quarter worth $94,000. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Lyell Immunopharma during the 2nd quarter worth $159,000. BBR Partners LLC purchased a new position in Lyell Immunopharma during the 4th quarter worth $210,000. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC purchased a new position in Lyell Immunopharma during the 2nd quarter worth $258,000. 66.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Lyell Immunopharma

Lyell Immunopharma is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing next-generation T cell therapies for cancer. Leveraging a proprietary platform that combines cell therapy, gene editing and molecular discovery, Lyell seeks to overcome key barriers in the treatment of solid tumors. The company’s approach centers on engineering T cells to enhance their persistence, functionality and resistance to the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment.

The company’s pipeline includes multiple autologous T cell programs engineered to target tumor-associated antigens in solid malignancies such as melanoma, ovarian and pancreatic cancers.