Benitec Biopharma Limited (NASDAQ:BNTC) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Benitec Biopharma Limited (NASDAQ:BNTC) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $24.80.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on BNTC shares. Wedbush began coverage on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a research report on Tuesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $16.00 price target for the company. Evercore assumed coverage on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Benitec Biopharma from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded shares of Benitec Biopharma from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th.

Benitec Biopharma Price Performance

Shares of BNTC opened at $11.71 on Tuesday. Benitec Biopharma has a one year low of $9.85 and a one year high of $16.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $402.24 million, a P/E ratio of -10.27 and a beta of 0.25. The business has a fifty day moving average of $12.03 and a 200 day moving average of $11.81.

Benitec Biopharma (NASDAQ:BNTC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.24) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.27) by $0.03. Analysts expect that Benitec Biopharma will post -1.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Benitec Biopharma

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Benitec Biopharma by 44.5% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,937 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 904 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its position in Benitec Biopharma by 156.5% in the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 3,834 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 2,339 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in Benitec Biopharma in the third quarter worth about $79,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. bought a new position in shares of Benitec Biopharma in the second quarter worth about $80,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Benitec Biopharma by 2,255.8% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,879 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 6,587 shares during the period. 52.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Benitec Biopharma

Benitec Biopharma Ltd (NASDAQ: BNTC) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing gene-silencing therapies for serious human diseases. The company’s proprietary DNA-directed RNA interference (ddRNAi) platform is designed to enable sustained expression of small RNA molecules that specifically target and silence disease-causing genes. By integrating RNAi sequences directly into DNA constructs, ddRNAi aims to provide a long-term therapeutic effect from a single administration.

Benitec’s lead programs include development of ddRNAi candidates for chronic hepatitis B virus infection and for certain ocular conditions.