Renaissance Technologies LLC Invests $413,000 in Galectin Therapeutics Inc. $GALT

Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Galectin Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:GALT) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 147,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $413,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Mangrove Partners IM LLC acquired a new position in Galectin Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth about $78,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Galectin Therapeutics by 9,997.2% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 18,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 17,895 shares in the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Galectin Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $73,000. Two Sigma Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Galectin Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in shares of Galectin Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $68,000. 11.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Galectin Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GALT opened at $3.52 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $231.82 million, a PE ratio of -8.19 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $3.65 and its 200-day moving average is $3.00. Galectin Therapeutics Inc. has a 52 week low of $2.03 and a 52 week high of $7.13.

Galectin Therapeutics (NASDAQ:GALT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 14th. The company reported ($0.14) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.05). Sell-side analysts forecast that Galectin Therapeutics Inc. will post -0.3 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Galectin Therapeutics news, insider Khurram Jamil sold 47,467 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.04, for a total value of $239,233.68. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,037 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,266.48. The trade was a 95.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Harold H. Shlevin sold 22,268 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.04, for a total value of $112,230.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,500 shares in the company, valued at $32,760. This trade represents a 77.41% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 90,162 shares of company stock worth $438,464 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 52.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on GALT. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $11.00 price objective on shares of Galectin Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Galectin Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Zacks Research upgraded Galectin Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Galectin Therapeutics from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Galectin Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.00.

About Galectin Therapeutics

Galectin Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development of novel therapies that target galectin proteins, which are implicated in fibrotic, inflammatory and malignant diseases. The company’s lead product candidate, belapectin (formerly GR-MD-02), is a galectin-3 inhibitor being evaluated in Phase 2 clinical trials for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) with cirrhosis. In addition to its core pipeline in fibrotic liver disease, Galectin Therapeutics continues to explore the potential of its galectin inhibitors in oncology and other indications driven by abnormal tissue remodeling.

Founded in 2000, the company is headquartered in Norcross, Georgia, where it oversees discovery research, preclinical studies and clinical trial coordination.