With a $1 Target Price, Is MannKind at Risk of Bankruptcy?

MannKind Corp. (NASDAQ: MNKD) has been under fire from Wall Street for quite some time and is no stranger to the cold shoulder of analysts. Its shares did tumble in Wednesday’s session after one analyst downgraded the stock.

Maxim Group downgraded MannKind to a Sell rating from Hold with a measly price target of $1. The driving force behind this call was the firm’s concern that there may be bankruptcy proceedings because the firm failed to get much of a sales bump from its TV campaign for Afrezza.

Overall, Maxim believes that this poor performance in the quarter and the need for cash may result in what some might call a death spiral. Maxim specifically noted that it sees Mannkind holding more debt than assets, so essentially it could be forced to reorganize under bankruptcy proceedings.

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Previously, Maxim was sidelined on the stock. Back in January, the firm just had a Hold rating. Maxim said in its report back then:

We see no good fundamental reason for the move and believe as the company continues to spend precious cash, they are moving closer to their next dilutive raise… Just days prior to the last capital raise, the company invited a group of sell side analysts to view manufacturing operations. On the tour, we met many enthusiastic folks including the chief medical officer. We discussed doing a call with physician users with him. He was “interested and engaged.” Minutes later, the CEO told us “ignore him, today is his last day.” It was, at best, unusual, and for us as analysts, a bit of a red flag, suggesting to us that things at MannKind were not as they seemed to be…

So is this the end for MannKind? Only time and perhaps bankruptcy court will tell.

Shares of MannKind were last seen down over 8% at $2.88, with a consensus analyst price target of $7.00 and a 52-week range of $0.67 to $6.96.

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