Kodiak Sciences (NASDAQ:KOD) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of Kodiak Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ:KOD) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $25.05, but opened at $26.22. Kodiak Sciences shares last traded at $27.3460, with a volume of 166,110 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on KOD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Kodiak Sciences from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $15.00 to $24.00 in a report on Friday, October 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Kodiak Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Kodiak Sciences in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Chardan Capital reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $14.00 price target on shares of Kodiak Sciences in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Finally, HC Wainwright raised their price objective on shares of Kodiak Sciences from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 17th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $26.57.

Kodiak Sciences Stock Up 7.8%

The business’s fifty day moving average is $23.18 and its 200 day moving average is $14.48. The stock has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a PE ratio of -6.53 and a beta of 2.67.

Kodiak Sciences (NASDAQ:KOD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The company reported ($1.16) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.07) by ($0.09). As a group, analysts predict that Kodiak Sciences Inc. will post -3.45 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Bros. Advisors Lp Baker bought 2,608,696 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $23.00 per share, for a total transaction of $60,000,008.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 18,358,772 shares in the company, valued at $422,251,756. This trade represents a 16.56% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 45.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kodiak Sciences

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. boosted its position in Kodiak Sciences by 55.1% during the 2nd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 2,055,707 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,668,000 after purchasing an additional 730,000 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Kodiak Sciences by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,969,876 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,343,000 after purchasing an additional 23,742 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Kodiak Sciences by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,950,292 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,926,000 after purchasing an additional 127,991 shares during the period. Boone Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Kodiak Sciences in the 3rd quarter worth about $11,719,000. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Kodiak Sciences by 90.1% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 685,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,922,000 after purchasing an additional 324,722 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.06% of the company’s stock.

About Kodiak Sciences

Kodiak Sciences, Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Palo Alto, California, that focuses on the discovery and development of novel therapies for retinal diseases. The company’s proprietary technology centers on antibody biopolymer conjugates (ABCs), which are designed to extend durability, enhance tissue penetration and improve the safety profile of existing therapeutic modalities. Kodiak’s research and development efforts target conditions such as wet age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD), diabetic macular edema (DME) and other serious ophthalmic disorders.

The lead product candidate in Kodiak’s pipeline is KSI-301, an anti-VEGF antibody biopolymer conjugate administered via intravitreal injection.