Zentalis Pharmaceuticals Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:ZNTL)

Zentalis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZNTL) saw unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders purchased 2,113 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 571% compared to the typical daily volume of 315 call options.

Zentalis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ZNTL traded down $0.32 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $2.08. The stock had a trading volume of 7,106,960 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,534,725. The company’s 50 day moving average is $3.02 and its 200-day moving average is $3.31. Zentalis Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $1.77 and a 12-month high of $18.07. The company has a market cap of $148.51 million, a PE ratio of -0.85 and a beta of 1.86.

Zentalis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ZNTL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.92) by $0.36. On average, equities research analysts predict that Zentalis Pharmaceuticals will post -2.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Zentalis Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Verition Fund Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Zentalis Pharmaceuticals by 172.1% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 1,504,320 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,536,000 after purchasing an additional 951,500 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in Zentalis Pharmaceuticals by 152.6% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 661,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,706,000 after purchasing an additional 399,745 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its holdings in Zentalis Pharmaceuticals by 138.5% during the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 608,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,240,000 after purchasing an additional 353,384 shares in the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA raised its position in Zentalis Pharmaceuticals by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 1,498,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,513,000 after purchasing an additional 265,690 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Zentalis Pharmaceuticals by 126.3% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 229,138 shares of the company’s stock worth $843,000 after purchasing an additional 127,868 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on ZNTL shares. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $4.00 price objective on shares of Zentalis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 24th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $20.00 target price on shares of Zentalis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, November 15th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Zentalis Pharmaceuticals from $5.00 to $2.20 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Guggenheim decreased their price target on shares of Zentalis Pharmaceuticals from $12.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $9.69.

About Zentalis Pharmaceuticals

Zentalis Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on discovering and developing small molecule therapeutics for the treatment of various cancers. Its products candidatures include the ZN-c3, an inhibitor of WEE1, a protein tyrosine kinase for the treatment of inhibitor for advanced solid tumors and hematological malignancies; in Phase 2 clinical trial as a monotherapy for the treatment of uterine serous carcinoma indications; Phase 2 clinical trial in Cyclin E1 driven high-grade serous ovarian cancer, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer; Phase 1/2 clinical trial in combination with PARPi for platinum-resistant ovarian cancer; Phase 1b clinical trial in combination with chemotherapy in platinum-resistant ovarian, and peritoneal or fallopian tube cancer; Phase 1/2 clinical trial in combination with chemotherapy in relapsed or refractory osteosarcoma; Phase 1/2 clinical trial with encorafenib and cetuximab for mutant metastatic colorectal cancer; and Phase 1/2 clinical trial in combination with chemotherapy in pancreatic cancer.