Krystal Biotech (NASDAQ:KRYS) Upgraded to “Moderate Buy” at Royal Bank Of Canada

Krystal Biotech (NASDAQ:KRYS) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada to a “moderate buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday,Zacks.com reports.

KRYS has been the subject of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $474.00 price target on shares of Krystal Biotech in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Chardan Capital upgraded Krystal Biotech to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. TD Cowen upped their target price on Krystal Biotech from $306.00 to $403.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Citigroup upped their target price on Krystal Biotech from $378.00 to $386.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Krystal Biotech from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $365.40.

Krystal Biotech Price Performance

KRYS stock opened at $332.27 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $9.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.64 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $344.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $299.25. Krystal Biotech has a 1 year low of $136.73 and a 1 year high of $382.54.

Krystal Biotech (NASDAQ:KRYS) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $119.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $120.93 million. Krystal Biotech had a net margin of 54.82% and a return on equity of 19.34%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Krystal Biotech will post 7.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Krystal Biotech news, Director Dino A. Rossi sold 25,000 shares of Krystal Biotech stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.12, for a total transaction of $8,228,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 50,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,456,000. The trade was a 33.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John Charles Thomas sold 1,000 shares of Krystal Biotech stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $347.27, for a total value of $347,270.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $347,270. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 51,642 shares of company stock valued at $16,471,923 over the last 90 days. 13.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Krystal Biotech

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KRYS. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Krystal Biotech by 145.2% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $294,000 after acquiring an additional 964 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Krystal Biotech by 29.9% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,187,000 after acquiring an additional 2,792 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in Krystal Biotech by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,893 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,870,000 after purchasing an additional 688 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Krystal Biotech during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in Krystal Biotech by 107.9% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,344 shares of the company’s stock valued at $597,000 after purchasing an additional 2,255 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.29% of the company’s stock.

Krystal Biotech Company Profile

Krystal Biotech, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing gene therapies for rare dermatological diseases. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the company applies proprietary viral vector delivery technology to enable topical administration of corrective genes directly to the skin. By targeting the underlying genetic causes of inherited skin disorders, Krystal Biotech seeks to address areas of high unmet medical need with potentially transformative treatments.

The company’s lead product candidate, KB103, is designed to deliver a functional COL7A1 gene to patients with dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB), a severe and often debilitating blistering condition.