Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC) Earns "Buy" Rating from HC Wainwright

Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating restated by HC Wainwright in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $35.00 price objective on the stock.

Separately, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Alector in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $17.75.

Alector Stock Up 7.8 %

NASDAQ ALEC traded up $0.41 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $5.65. 670,237 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 620,781. The stock has a market cap of $549.86 million, a PE ratio of -3.19 and a beta of 0.66. Alector has a 52 week low of $3.66 and a 52 week high of $8.90. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $5.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.12.

Alector (NASDAQ:ALEC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.40) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by $0.09. The company had revenue of $15.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.04 million. Alector had a negative return on equity of 102.63% and a negative net margin of 290.66%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.02 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alector will post -1.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Marc Grasso sold 7,297 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.88, for a total value of $35,609.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 130,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $638,011.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Paula Hammond sold 10,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.06, for a total value of $53,130.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 60,209 shares of the company's stock, valued at $304,657.54. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Marc Grasso sold 7,297 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.88, for a total transaction of $35,609.36. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 130,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $638,011.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 58,222 shares of company stock worth $286,013 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 9.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alector

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Alector in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Alector during the first quarter valued at $40,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alector in the first quarter valued at about $59,000. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alector during the third quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Alector by 65.3% in the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 18,718 shares of the company's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 7,395 shares during the last quarter. 85.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Alector

Alector, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, develops therapies for the treatment of neurodegeneration diseases. Its products include AL001, an immune activity in the brain with genetic links to multiple neurodegenerative disorders, which is in Phase III clinical trial for the treatment of frontotemporal dementia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis diseases; and AL101 that is in Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.