Nkarta (NASDAQ:NKTX) Reports Earnings, Surpassing Expectations

Nkarta (NASDAQ:NKTX) announced its latest quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, revealing a loss of ($0.35) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. This result was better than analysts' predictions, which had estimated the loss to be ($0.41). Therefore, Nkarta exceeded expectations by $0.06, according to reports from Zacks.

Nkarta Stock Performance

Following the earnings announcement, Nkarta's stock saw a positive reaction on Thursday, gaining $0.60 and reaching a price of $1.97 during midday trading. The trading volume for the day was notable, with 8,274,968 shares exchanged compared to the average volume of 1,057,777 shares. The company now has a market capitalization of $138.67 million, alongside a P/E ratio of -1.05 and a beta of 0.90. Notably, Nkarta's fifty-day simple moving average stands at $2.01, while its 200-day average is at $2.90. Over the past year, the stock has experienced lows of $1.31 and highs of $11.84.

Insider Trading Activity

In related developments, CEO Paul J. Hastings sold 17,378 shares of Nkarta stock on January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.20, leading to a total transaction value of $38,231.60. Following this sale, Hastings now holds 319,859 shares, which are valued at approximately $703,689.80. This transaction indicated a 5.15% decrease in his ownership stake in the company. Details of this sale were disclosed in documents filed with the SEC, which are publicly accessible. It is worth noting that insiders currently own 8.70% of Nkarta's stock.

Analyst Ratings and Future Outlook

Several financial research firms have recently provided their insights on Nkarta. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded their target price for Nkarta from $15.00 to $14.00 while maintaining a "buy" rating on the stock. Similarly, HC Wainwright confirmed a "buy" rating, setting a new price target of $18.00. Additionally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and established a target price of $11.00. Currently, six analysts have rated the stock as a buy, and two have designated it as a strong buy. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Nkarta holds an average rating of "Buy" with a consensus target price around $14.86.

About Nkarta

Nkarta, Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company engaged in developing and commercializing therapies based on natural killer cells for the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases. The company's flagship product candidate, NKX019, is a chimeric antigen receptor-natural killer (CAR NK) therapy targeting the CD19 antigen. It is currently undergoing a Phase 1 clinical trial for patients with relapsed or refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma and also for conditions like lupus nephritis.

Earnings, Stocks, Performance