Aura Biosciences (NASDAQ:AURA) Releases Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.10 EPS

Aura Biosciences (NASDAQ:AURA) issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The company reported ($0.50) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.40) by ($0.10), FiscalAI reports.

Aura Biosciences Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of Aura Biosciences stock traded down $0.21 on Monday, reaching $8.19. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 331,794 shares, compared to its average volume of 349,795. The company has a market capitalization of $525.80 million, a P/E ratio of -4.58 and a beta of 0.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $6.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $6.05. Aura Biosciences has a 52-week low of $4.34 and a 52-week high of $9.53.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. HC Wainwright upped their price objective on shares of Aura Biosciences from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Aura Biosciences in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Aura Biosciences from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Aura Biosciences currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.50.

Insider Transactions at Aura Biosciences

In other Aura Biosciences news, insider Janet Jill Hopkins sold 20,401 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.06, for a total transaction of $103,229.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 232,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,175,357.04. The trade was a 8.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Amy Elazzouzi sold 8,549 shares of Aura Biosciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.06, for a total value of $43,257.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 75,532 shares in the company, valued at $382,191.92. This represents a 10.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 116,305 shares of company stock worth $611,230 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aura Biosciences

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Aura Biosciences in the first quarter valued at about $137,000. Invesco Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Aura Biosciences during the second quarter worth about $76,000. Nantahala Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Aura Biosciences by 67.1% during the 2nd quarter. Nantahala Capital Management LLC now owns 2,117,697 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,257,000 after buying an additional 850,000 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Aura Biosciences by 31.1% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 84,558 shares of the company’s stock worth $529,000 after acquiring an additional 20,065 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aura Biosciences in the second quarter worth $102,000. 96.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Aura Biosciences

Aura Biosciences is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel virus‐like particle (VLP) therapies for the treatment of cancer. By combining proprietary VLP technology with photoactivatable dyes, Aura aims to deliver highly selective photodynamic therapies that target and destroy tumor cells while sparing healthy tissue. The company’s platform is designed to address solid tumors in both ophthalmic and non‐ophthalmic settings, leveraging precision activation via near‐infrared light to induce localized tumor cell apoptosis and stimulate anti‐tumor immune responses.

The lead product candidate, AU-011, is being evaluated in patients with choroidal melanoma, a rare but potentially sight-threatening eye cancer.