BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX) Upgraded at Sanford C. Bernstein

BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX) was upgraded by equities researchers at Sanford C. Bernstein to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of BioNTech in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of BioNTech in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered BioNTech from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of BioNTech in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of BioNTech in a report on Monday, April 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.44.

BioNTech Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BNTX opened at $92.14 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.30 billion, a PE ratio of -15.67 and a beta of 1.36. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $94.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $99.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 8.80 and a quick ratio of 8.74. BioNTech has a 12 month low of $79.52 and a 12 month high of $124.00.

BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX) last posted its earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The company reported ($0.39) EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter. BioNTech had a negative net margin of 44.39% and a negative return on equity of 5.30%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that BioNTech will post -4.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BioNTech announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 7th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 4.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at BioNTech

In other news, COO Sierk Poetting sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.56, for a total transaction of $5,528,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 399,387 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,156,226.72. This represents a 11.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 19.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BioNTech

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of BioNTech by 86.4% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 274 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. EFG International AG acquired a new stake in shares of BioNTech during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in shares of BioNTech by 520.0% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in shares of BioNTech by 1,266.7% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 410 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 380 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of BioNTech by 118.2% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 563 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 15.52% of the company’s stock.

BioNTech Company Profile

BioNTech SE (NASDAQ: BNTX) is a Germany-based biotechnology company that develops next-generation immunotherapies and vaccines, with a primary focus on messenger RNA (mRNA) technology. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Mainz, BioNTech advances a platform approach to design and manufacture therapeutics across oncology, infectious diseases and other high unmet-need areas. The company is publicly traded on the NASDAQ exchange and became widely known for its rapid development and global deployment of an mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine in collaboration with Pfizer.

BioNTech’s core activities include discovery research, clinical development and manufacturing of mRNA-based medicines, personalized cancer immunotherapies, engineered cell therapies, and antibody- and protein-based therapeutics.