Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Grows Holdings in Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX) by 39.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 35,368 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 9,950 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc owned about 0.06% of Pliant Therapeutics worth $380,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Light Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Pliant Therapeutics by 22.4% during the 4th quarter. First Light Asset Management LLC now owns 3,591,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,047,000 after buying an additional 658,516 shares during the period. Mass General Brigham Inc acquired a new position in Pliant Therapeutics during the 1st quarter worth $4,301,000. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in Pliant Therapeutics by 50.9% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,377,327 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,522,000 after acquiring an additional 464,860 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Pliant Therapeutics by 13.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,478,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,827,000 after acquiring an additional 412,486 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Granahan Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Pliant Therapeutics by 22.5% during the 4th quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC now owns 1,150,766 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,840,000 after acquiring an additional 211,557 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.30% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Pliant Therapeutics

In related news, General Counsel Mike Ouimette sold 7,656 shares of Pliant Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.56, for a total value of $88,503.36. Following the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 94,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,087,148.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, General Counsel Mike Ouimette sold 7,656 shares of Pliant Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.56, for a total value of $88,503.36. Following the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 94,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,087,148.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Bernard Coulie sold 38,710 shares of Pliant Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 10th. The shares were 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 $5,582,740.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 69,596 shares of company stock worth $804,530 in the last ninety days. 6.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on PLRX. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price objective on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Pliant Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Pliant Therapeutics from $48.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Leerink Partners initiated coverage on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a report on Monday, September 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $33.00 price target for the company. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.57.

Pliant Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ PLRX opened at $11.31 on Monday. Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. has a one year low of $10.29 and a one year high of $19.62. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.86. The company has a quick ratio of 14.47, a current ratio of 14.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

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

Pliant Therapeutics 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.