SG Americas Securities LLC Increases Position in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:AUPH)

SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:AUPH - Free Report) TSE: AUP by 4,307.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 547,727 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 535,301 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC owned approximately 0.38% of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals worth $4,015,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise lifted its holdings in shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 126.6% in the 2nd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 9,684 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 5,410 shares during the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth about $84,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth about $78,000. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $202,000. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Aurinia Pharmaceuticals by 67.4% in the first quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 27,802 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 11,189 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.83% of the company's stock.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 3.9 %

Shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $0.28 on Monday, hitting $6.84. 605,722 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,676,843. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $6.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.74. The company has a current ratio of 5.33, a quick ratio of 4.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc. has a 52 week low of $4.71 and a 52 week high of $10.05. The company has a market cap of $975.82 million, a PE ratio of -16.56 and a beta of 1.44.

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AUPH - Get Free Report) TSE: AUP last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The biotechnology company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.01. Aurinia Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 24.31% and a negative return on equity of 11.84%. The firm had revenue of $57.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $54.25 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.08) earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 37.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc. will post 0.13 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Scott Michael Habig sold 18,249 shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.31, for a total transaction of $96,902.19. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 456,338 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,423,154.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 4.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AUPH has been the subject of several analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $10.00 price objective on shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, September 16th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $13.00 price objective on shares of Aurinia Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, September 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $10.00.

About Aurinia Pharmaceuticals

Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing therapies to treat various diseases with unmet medical need in the United States. It offers LUPKYNIS for the treatment of adult patients with active lupus nephritis. It has a collaboration and license agreement with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd.