Equities Analysts Issue Forecasts for PLRX FY2029 Earnings

Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX) – Equities researchers at HC Wainwright boosted their FY2029 earnings per share estimates for shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, March 4th. HC Wainwright analyst E. Arce now expects that the company will post earnings of $1.80 per share for the year, up from their previous estimate of $1.75. HC Wainwright has a “Neutral” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Pliant Therapeutics’ current full-year earnings is ($3.64) per share.

Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 3rd. The company reported ($0.82) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.99) by $0.17.

PLRX has been the subject of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Pliant Therapeutics from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a report on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Pliant Therapeutics from $4.00 to $3.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $4.00 target price (down from $43.00) on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.31.

Pliant Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of PLRX stock opened at $1.52 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $8.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.66. The stock has a market cap of $92.50 million, a PE ratio of -0.46 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 10.26, a quick ratio of 10.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. Pliant Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $1.26 and a 12 month high of $16.52.

Institutional Trading of Pliant Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Frazier Life Sciences Management L.P. bought a new position in Pliant Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth $14,761,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 139,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,838,000 after acquiring an additional 21,637 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 127,295 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,676,000 after acquiring an additional 15,635 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 31.8% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 18,931 shares of the company’s stock worth $249,000 after purchasing an additional 4,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paradigm Biocapital Advisors LP raised its stake in Pliant Therapeutics by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Paradigm Biocapital Advisors LP now owns 3,197,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,105,000 after purchasing an additional 92,564 shares during the period. 97.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Pliant Therapeutics news, General Counsel Mike Ouimette sold 10,230 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.99, for a total value of $112,427.70. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 70,544 shares in the company, valued at $775,278.56. This represents a 12.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Bernard Coulie sold 52,419 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.20, for a total transaction of $587,092.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 430,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,821,790.40. The trade was a 10.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 91,855 shares of company stock worth $1,026,628. 6.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.