Brokerages Set Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX) PT at $40.57

Shares of Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Buy” by the nine research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $40.57.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Leerink Partners began coverage on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, September 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $33.00 target price for the company. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $38.00 target price on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Pliant Therapeutics from $48.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Pliant Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th.

Pliant Therapeutics Stock Performance

PLRX opened at $12.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 14.47 and a current ratio of 14.47. Pliant Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $10.29 and a 1-year high of $19.62. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $12.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $13.07.

Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.92) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.85) by ($0.07). As a group, analysts expect that Pliant Therapeutics will post -3.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Bernard Coulie sold 38,710 shares of Pliant Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.56, for a total transaction of $447,487.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 482,936 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,582,740.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Pliant Therapeutics news, General Counsel Mike Ouimette sold 7,656 shares of Pliant Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.56, for a total value of $88,503.36. Following the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 94,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,087,148.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Bernard Coulie sold 38,710 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.56, for a total value of $447,487.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 482,936 shares in the company, valued at $5,582,740.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 69,596 shares of company stock worth $804,530. 6.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pliant Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PLRX. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Pliant Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in Pliant Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $59,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Pliant Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at about $107,000. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Pliant Therapeutics by 67.1% in the first quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 11,581 shares of the company’s stock worth $173,000 after buying an additional 4,652 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C purchased a new stake in Pliant Therapeutics in the second quarter worth about $126,000. 97.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pliant Therapeutics Company Profile

Pliant Therapeutics, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes novel therapies for the treatment of fibrosis and related diseases in the United States. The company's lead candidate is bexotegrast, an oral, small-molecule, dual selective inhibitor of avß6 and avß1 integrins, which is in phase 2b trials for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and in phase 2a trial for primary sclerosing cholangitis.