MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $2.52 and last traded at $2.68, with a volume of 6614041 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $2.61.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MNKD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of MannKind in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $7.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of MannKind from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $3.50 price objective (down from $7.50) on shares of MannKind in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Wall Street Zen downgraded MannKind from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered MannKind from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MannKind currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $9.06.

MannKind Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $5.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.30. The company has a market cap of $868.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 141.07 and a beta of 0.83.

MannKind (NASDAQ:MNKD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.04). MannKind had a net margin of 1.68% and a negative return on equity of 11.21%. The business had revenue of $111.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.85 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.03 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 45.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that MannKind Corporation will post 0.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Michael Castagna acquired 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $2.59 per share, for a total transaction of $259,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 2,575,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,671,609.49. This trade represents a 4.04% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Stuart A. Tross sold 47,006 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.33, for a total value of $297,547.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 985,007 shares in the company, valued at $6,235,094.31. The trade was a 4.55% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 154,926 shares of company stock worth $945,726. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MannKind

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MNKD. Larry Mathis Financial Planning LLC bought a new stake in shares of MannKind in the 4th quarter valued at about $97,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in MannKind during the 4th quarter worth approximately $70,000. Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in MannKind by 50.8% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 1,861,046 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,552,000 after purchasing an additional 626,878 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL acquired a new position in MannKind during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $182,000. Finally, Polymer Capital Management US LLC bought a new stake in MannKind in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $168,000. 49.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MannKind Company Profile

MannKind Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company specialized in the development and commercialization of inhaled therapeutic products. The company’s core business revolves around its proprietary Technosphere® drug‐delivery platform, which is designed to enable rapid absorption of small‐molecule drugs through pulmonary administration. MannKind’s lead product, Afrezza®, is an inhaled insulin therapy intended for adults with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, offering users a rapid‐acting alternative to traditional injectable insulins.

Afrezza received U.S.