Zai Lab (NASDAQ:ZLAB) Trading Up 7% – Still a Buy?

Zai Lab Limited Unsponsored ADR (NASDAQ:ZLAB) traded up 7% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $20.53 and last traded at $20.66. Approximately 406,055 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 50% from the average daily volume of 819,092 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ZLAB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Zai Lab from $39.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Zai Lab from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Zai Lab from $47.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Zacks Research upgraded Zai Lab from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Zai Lab from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.00.

Zai Lab Price Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $18.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.63 and a beta of 0.76.

Zai Lab (NASDAQ:ZLAB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The company reported ($0.50) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $99.61 million for the quarter. Zai Lab had a negative return on equity of 24.32% and a negative net margin of 39.29%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Zai Lab Limited Unsponsored ADR will post -2.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Zai Lab

In other news, Director William Lis sold 7,040 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.09, for a total transaction of $127,353.60. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 50,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $912,405.33. This trade represents a 12.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Ying Du sold 7,026 shares of Zai Lab stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.53, for a total transaction of $130,191.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,203,784 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,306,117.52. The trade was a 0.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders sold 90,873 shares of company stock valued at $1,730,096. Company insiders own 4.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A hedge fund recently raised its position in Zai Lab stock. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Zai Lab Limited Unsponsored ADR (NASDAQ:ZLAB) by 6.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,396 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 642 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Zai Lab were worth $183,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. 41.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Zai Lab Company Profile

Zai Lab Ltd (NASDAQ: ZLAB) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the research, development, manufacturing and commercialization of innovative therapies. Headquartered in Shanghai, China, Zai Lab operates R&D centers in Asia and the United States and maintains commercial offices across Greater China, North America, Europe and Australia. The company’s end-to-end platform encompasses discovery biology, translational development, clinical research and global supply chain management.

The company’s marketed portfolio is anchored by Brukinsa (zanubrutinib), a next-generation Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitor approved for several B-cell malignancies.