Benitec Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ:BNTC) Shares Sold by Simplify Asset Management Inc.

Simplify Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Benitec Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ:BNTC) by 34.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 76,337 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 40,198 shares during the period. Simplify Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Benitec Biopharma were worth $964,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Acuta Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Benitec Biopharma in the third quarter valued at $274,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Benitec Biopharma by 31.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 83,987 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $772,000 after purchasing an additional 20,012 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Suvretta Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Benitec Biopharma by 422.0% in the 3rd quarter. Suvretta Capital Management LLC now owns 8,829,053 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $81,139,000 after purchasing an additional 7,137,763 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.19% of the company’s stock.

Benitec Biopharma Stock Down 4.1 %

NASDAQ:BNTC opened at $16.11 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $377.80 million, a P/E ratio of -10.67 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $11.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.95. Benitec Biopharma Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $4.75 and a fifty-two week high of $16.90.

Benitec Biopharma (NASDAQ:BNTC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.36) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.55) by $0.19. Research analysts forecast that Benitec Biopharma Inc. will post -1.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on BNTC shares. Robert W. Baird started coverage on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $30.00 price target on the stock. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $17.00 target price on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Baird R W upgraded Benitec Biopharma to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a report on Friday, February 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $24.43.

Insider Transactions at Benitec Biopharma

In other Benitec Biopharma news, Director Suvretta Capital Management, L acquired 27,502 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $10.98 per share, with a total value of $301,971.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,981,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,639,340.50. The trade was a 0.35 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Benitec Biopharma Company Profile

Benitec Biopharma Inc, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, focuses on the development of novel genetic medicines. The company develops DNA-directed RNA interference-based therapeutics for chronic and life-threatening human conditions. It is developing BB-301, an adeno-associated virus based gene therapy agent for treating oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy.