Janux Therapeutics (NASDAQ:JANX) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Should You Buy?

Janux Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:JANX) shares saw unusually-high trading volume on Thursday . 3,168,658 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 172% from the previous session’s volume of 1,166,336 shares.The stock last traded at $15.17 and had previously closed at $14.64.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $26.00 target price (down from $80.00) on shares of Janux Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday. Guggenheim lowered their price target on Janux Therapeutics from $68.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Barclays downgraded Janux Therapeutics from an “overweight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $29.00 to $14.00 in a report on Monday, April 20th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Janux Therapeutics from $30.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Janux Therapeutics from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.15.

Janux Therapeutics Stock Up 2.2%

The company has a market cap of $912.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.13 and a beta of 2.53. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.15.

Janux Therapeutics (NASDAQ:JANX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.39) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.52) by $0.13. The company had revenue of $3.73 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.36 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Janux Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Janeen Noel Doyle sold 4,059 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.03, for a total value of $56,947.77. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 75,941 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,065,452.23. The trade was a 5.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, VP Maria Dobek sold 2,038 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.17, for a total transaction of $28,878.46. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 32,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $457,265.90. This represents a 5.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 7.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Janux Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Janux Therapeutics by 71.7% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 9,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 4,059 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in Janux Therapeutics by 18.8% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 21,403 shares of the company’s stock worth $583,000 after buying an additional 3,393 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in Janux Therapeutics by 12.5% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 186,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,033,000 after buying an additional 20,657 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Janux Therapeutics by 82.9% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 247,424 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,715,000 after buying an additional 112,116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in shares of Janux Therapeutics by 12.0% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 47,353 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,094,000 after acquiring an additional 5,055 shares during the period. 75.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Janux Therapeutics

Janux Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing next-generation intratumoral immuno-oncology therapies that harness the body’s innate and adaptive immune systems. The company designs and synthesizes proprietary Toll-like receptor (TLR) agonists to reprogram the tumor microenvironment. Janux is publicly traded on the Nasdaq under the symbol JANX.

Its lead programs include JTX-8064, a fully synthetic TLR4 agonist engineered for optimal stability and potency, and JTX-4014, a TLR1/2 agonist formulated for direct intratumoral administration.