MeiraGTx (NASDAQ:MGTX) Stock Price Down 4.9% – Here’s Why

MeiraGTx Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:MGTX) shares were down 4.9% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $12.42 and last traded at $12.44. 486,648 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 32% from the average session volume of 720,058 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.08.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded MeiraGTx from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Zacks Research cut MeiraGTx from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on MeiraGTx from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of MeiraGTx in a research report on Thursday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $16.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of MeiraGTx from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MeiraGTx currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $24.71.

MeiraGTx Price Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $13.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 3.76 and a current ratio of 3.76. The firm has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of 16.55 and a beta of 1.27.

MeiraGTx (NASDAQ:MGTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.46) by $2.17. MeiraGTx had a net margin of 19.87% and a return on equity of 283.85%. The company had revenue of $321.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.70 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that MeiraGTx Holdings PLC will post 0.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at MeiraGTx

In other MeiraGTx news, CEO Alexandria Forbes sold 62,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.86, for a total value of $859,320.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,325,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,374,132.70. This represents a 4.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Richard Giroux sold 56,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.51, for a total transaction of $700,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 908,530 shares in the company, valued at $11,365,710.30. This represents a 5.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 145,659 shares of company stock valued at $1,969,233. Insiders own 7.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MeiraGTx

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Opaleye Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of MeiraGTx by 67.2% in the second quarter. Opaleye Management Inc. now owns 3,550,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,960,000 after acquiring an additional 1,426,741 shares during the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP boosted its stake in shares of MeiraGTx by 157.8% during the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 69,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $933,000 after acquiring an additional 42,292 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its position in MeiraGTx by 773.9% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 162,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,194,000 after purchasing an additional 143,828 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System acquired a new position in MeiraGTx in the 2nd quarter valued at about $207,000. Finally, AXQ Capital LP acquired a new position in MeiraGTx in the 2nd quarter valued at about $421,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.48% of the company’s stock.

About MeiraGTx

MeiraGTx Holdings plc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing gene therapies for serious diseases with limited treatment options. The company uses adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors and other genetic medicine technologies to deliver therapeutic genes to targeted tissues, with an emphasis on disorders affecting the central nervous system, the eye and other organs.

MeiraGTx’s pipeline has included botaretigene sparoparvovec, an investigational AAV-based gene therapy for X-linked retinitis pigmentosa caused by mutations in the RPGR gene.