Opthea (NASDAQ:OPT) Rating Lowered to “Market Perform” at Oppenheimer

Opthea (NASDAQ:OPT) was downgraded by stock analysts at Oppenheimer from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on OPT. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Opthea to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $12.00 price objective on shares of Opthea in a research report on Friday, February 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1.33.

Opthea Price Performance

Shares of OPT opened at $3.41 on Monday. Opthea has a 1-year low of $1.79 and a 1-year high of $6.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $4.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $4.07.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Opthea

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OPT. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Opthea in the third quarter valued at $114,000. ABC Arbitrage SA acquired a new stake in shares of Opthea during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Citadel Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Opthea during the 4th quarter worth about $79,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in shares of Opthea during the fourth quarter worth about $556,000. Finally, OLD Mission Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Opthea in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 55.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Opthea Company Profile

Opthea Limited, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development and commercialization of therapies primarily for eye disease in Australia. The company's development activities are based on the intellectual property portfolio covering Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors (VEGF) VEGF-C, VEGF-D, and VEGF Receptor-3 for the treatment of diseases associated with blood and lymphatic vessel growth, as well as vascular leakage.