Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX) Trading 3.6% Higher – Time to Buy?

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PLRX has been the subject of several analyst reports. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Pliant Therapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Leerink Partners assumed coverage on Pliant Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, September 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $33.00 price objective on the stock. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Pliant Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $40.50.

Pliant Therapeutics Stock Up 5.0 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $876.24 million, a P/E ratio of -4.11 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 10.26 and a quick ratio of 10.26. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $13.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.78.

Institutional Trading of Pliant Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PLRX. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics during the second quarter worth approximately $59,000. Atria Investments Inc purchased a new position in Pliant Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $112,000. Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C bought a new stake in Pliant Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at approximately $126,000. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 65.0% during the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 11,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $131,000 after purchasing an additional 4,607 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics in the third quarter worth approximately $145,000. 97.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.