89bio (NASDAQ:ETNB) Shares Up 7.1% - Time to Buy?

89bio, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETNB - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 7.1% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $11.54 and last traded at $11.51. 579,274 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 3,259,274 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.75.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ETNB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $29.00 price target on shares of 89bio in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of 89bio in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Raymond James upgraded shares of 89bio to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and set a $29.00 target price on shares of 89bio in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on 89bio from $25.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, 89bio has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $31.43.

89bio Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 11.66, a current ratio of 11.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of -3.92 and a beta of 1.17. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $8.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $8.28.

Insider Buying and Selling at 89bio

In other 89bio news, CEO Rohan Palekar purchased 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $8.35 per share, with a total value of $83,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 466,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,893,070.60. This represents a 2.19 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Quoc Le-Nguyen sold 10,963 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.49, for a total transaction of $71,149.87. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 271,833 shares in the company, valued at $1,764,196.17. The trade was a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 5,744,285 shares of company stock worth $50,235,694. Corporate insiders own 2.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On 89bio

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ETNB. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of 89bio by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,969 shares of the company's stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 1,437 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in 89bio by 1.2% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 140,998 shares of the company's stock worth $1,043,000 after purchasing an additional 1,624 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its stake in 89bio by 24.3% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 16,367 shares of the company's stock worth $128,000 after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in 89bio by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 23,817 shares of the company's stock valued at $186,000 after purchasing an additional 3,252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of 89bio by 12.8% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 31,355 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,000 after buying an additional 3,557 shares during the period.

89bio Company Profile

89bio, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of therapies for the treatment of liver and cardio-metabolic diseases. Its lead product candidate is pegozafermin, a glycoPEGylated analog of fibroblast growth factor 21 for the treatment of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis; and for the treatment of severe hypertriglyceridemia.