bluebird bio (NASDAQ:BLUE) Earns Sell Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of bluebird bio (NASDAQ:BLUE) in a report issued on Friday morning. The firm issued a sell rating on the biotechnology company’s stock.

BLUE has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of bluebird bio from $80.00 to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Bank of America downgraded bluebird bio from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $60.00 to $10.00 in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of bluebird bio from $60.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of bluebird bio from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of bluebird bio in a report on Monday, September 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, bluebird bio currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.14.

bluebird bio Stock Performance

BLUE opened at $8.50 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $82.64 million, a P/E ratio of -4.55 and a beta of 0.72. bluebird bio has a 1-year low of $5.80 and a 1-year high of $38.40.

bluebird bio (NASDAQ:BLUE) last posted its earnings results on Friday, September 27th. The biotechnology company reported ($8.40) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($8.00) by ($0.40). bluebird bio had a negative net margin of 565.74% and a negative return on equity of 322.46%. The company had revenue of $16.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.09 million. Equities analysts forecast that bluebird bio will post -1.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Allegheny Financial Group LTD purchased a new position in shares of bluebird bio in the second quarter worth $25,000. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of bluebird bio in the 3rd quarter valued at $42,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in bluebird bio by 152.4% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 122,855 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 74,185 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its position in bluebird bio by 48.2% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 237,648 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $123,000 after acquiring an additional 77,293 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in bluebird bio by 273.7% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 252,062 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 184,605 shares during the last quarter. 87.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

bluebird bio Company Profile

bluebird bio, Inc, a biotechnology company, researches, develops, and commercializes gene therapies for severe genetic diseases. Its product candidates for severe genetic diseases include ZYNTEGLO (betibeglogene autotemcel) for the treatment of transfusion-dependent ß-thalassemia; lovotibeglogene autotemcel for the treatment of sickle cell disease (SCD); and SKYSONA (elivaldogene autotemcel) to treat cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy.