Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX) Downgraded to Neutral Rating by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research note published on Monday, MarketBeat reports.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the company. HC Wainwright cut Pliant Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Pliant Therapeutics from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $41.00 to $4.00 in a research report on Monday. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $4.00 target price (down from $43.00) on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on Pliant Therapeutics from $38.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Pliant Therapeutics from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $45.00 to $4.00 in a report on Monday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $17.75.

Pliant Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of Pliant Therapeutics stock opened at $3.07 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $186.81 million, a P/E ratio of -0.92 and a beta of 1.03. Pliant Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $2.82 and a 52 week high of $18.00. The company has a quick ratio of 10.26, a current ratio of 10.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $12.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.94.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pliant Therapeutics

In other Pliant Therapeutics news, General Counsel Mike Ouimette sold 10,230 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.99, for a total transaction of $112,427.70. Following the transaction, the general counsel now owns 70,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $775,278.56. The trade was a 12.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Hans Hull sold 15,936 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.20, for a total value of $178,483.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 211,558 shares in the company, valued at $2,369,449.60. This represents a 7.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 91,855 shares of company stock worth $1,026,628 over the last three months. Insiders own 6.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pliant Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,402,730 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,725,000 after buying an additional 26,610 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Pliant Therapeutics by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,318,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,781,000 after purchasing an additional 31,221 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,039,904 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,657,000 after buying an additional 14,913 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in Pliant Therapeutics by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 900,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,854,000 after buying an additional 66,888 shares during the period. Finally, Fernwood Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 3.4% in the third quarter. Fernwood Investment Management LLC now owns 513,136 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,752,000 after acquiring an additional 16,850 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.30% of the company’s stock.

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.