Investors Buy Large Volume of Humacyte Call Options (NASDAQ:HUMA)

Humacyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:HUMA) saw unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 4,104 call options on the company. This is an increase of 152% compared to the average daily volume of 1,627 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on HUMA. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Humacyte in a report on Friday, April 10th. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $2.00 target price on shares of Humacyte in a report on Monday. D. Boral Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Humacyte in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $4.00 price target (up from $3.00) on shares of Humacyte in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Humacyte from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $6.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Humacyte news, insider Shamik J. Parikh sold 45,887 shares of Humacyte stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $0.90, for a total transaction of $41,298.30. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 272,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $245,441.70. The trade was a 14.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Kathleen Sebelius bought 56,818 shares of Humacyte stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $0.88 per share, for a total transaction of $49,999.84. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 148,025 shares in the company, valued at approximately $130,262. This trade represents a 62.30% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Humacyte

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Humacyte in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Atom Investors LP bought a new stake in shares of Humacyte in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Truist Financial Corp purchased a new position in shares of Humacyte in the third quarter worth $28,000. Prudential Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Humacyte during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Financial Advisors Network Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Humacyte during the second quarter valued at $28,000. 44.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Humacyte Stock Down 21.3%

HUMA stock traded down $0.29 during trading on Thursday, hitting $1.06. 17,613,344 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,673,518. The stock has a market cap of $234.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.85 and a beta of 2.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.46, a current ratio of 3.93 and a quick ratio of 3.32. Humacyte has a 1 year low of $0.55 and a 1 year high of $2.84. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $0.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1.04.

Humacyte (NASDAQ:HUMA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by $0.01. The business had revenue of $0.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.46 million. Humacyte had a negative net margin of 4,836.06% and a negative return on equity of 2,914.18%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Humacyte will post -0.32 EPS for the current year.

Humacyte Company Profile

Humacyte, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and manufacturing of off-the-shelf, regenerative human acellular vessels (HAVs) designed to address critical vascular access needs. The company’s proprietary vessels are engineered from human donor cells and then decellularized to create a biocompatible scaffold capable of integrating with a patient’s own tissue. Humacyte’s primary business activities encompass process development, large-scale manufacturing, and clinical evaluation of HAVs for use in end-stage renal disease, peripheral arterial disease and other vascular repair applications.

The company’s lead product candidate, the HAV, has advanced through multiple clinical trials for arteriovenous access in hemodialysis patients, demonstrating durability, reduced infection rates and compatibility with repeated cannulation.