Pliant Therapeutics (NASDAQ:PLRX) Trading Up 11% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Pliant Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLRX) were up 11% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $12.48 and last traded at $12.48. Approximately 312,527 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 12% from the average daily volume of 355,436 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.24.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 target price on shares of Pliant Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Seven investment 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.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.50.

Pliant Therapeutics Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $13.43 and a 200-day moving average of $13.03. The company has a market cap of $682.13 million, a P/E ratio of -3.36 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 10.26, a current ratio of 10.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pliant Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PLRX. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Pliant Therapeutics by 17.9% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 96,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,037,000 after acquiring an additional 14,662 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 18.1% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 74,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $797,000 after purchasing an additional 11,351 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of 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 during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 233.8% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 253,369 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,724,000 after purchasing an additional 177,469 shares during the period. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc boosted its stake in shares of Pliant Therapeutics by 39.1% during the second 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. Institutional investors own 97.30% of the company’s stock.

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.