Opthea (NASDAQ:OPT) Cut to Market Perform at Leerink Partners

Leerink Partners lowered shares of Opthea (NASDAQ:OPT) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has $1.00 price objective on the stock, down from their prior price objective of $12.00.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on OPT. Oppenheimer cut Opthea from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Opthea to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $12.00 price objective on shares of Opthea in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $1.00 price target (down previously from $8.00) on shares of Opthea in a research report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1.33.

Opthea Stock Performance

Shares of OPT opened at $3.41 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $4.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $4.06. Opthea has a fifty-two week low of $1.79 and a fifty-two week high of $6.30.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Opthea

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of OPT. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in Opthea during the third quarter worth $114,000. Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Opthea during the third quarter worth $81,000. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new stake in Opthea during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. OLD Mission Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Opthea in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in shares of Opthea during the 4th quarter valued at about $556,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.95% of the company’s stock.

About Opthea

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.