Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX) Stock Price Up 3.6% – Here’s What Happened

Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX)’s stock price traded up 3.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $14.25 and last traded at $14.21. 24,354 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 95% from the average session volume of 456,045 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.72.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on PLRX shares. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on Pliant Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, September 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $33.00 price target for the company. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $38.00 target price on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Pliant Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Pliant Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $40.50.

Pliant Therapeutics Trading Down 2.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 10.26 and a current ratio of 10.26. The company’s fifty day moving average is $14.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.80. The company has a market cap of $851.96 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.19 and a beta of 1.05.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pliant Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PLRX. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 1.4% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 83,483 shares of the company’s stock worth $897,000 after buying an additional 1,191 shares during the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Pliant Therapeutics by 65.0% in the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 11,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $131,000 after acquiring an additional 4,607 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Pliant Therapeutics by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 305,322 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,282,000 after purchasing an additional 5,152 shares in the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $59,000. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 39.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 35,368 shares of the company’s stock valued at $380,000 after purchasing an additional 9,950 shares in the last quarter. 97.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Pliant Therapeutics

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.