Shares of ProKidney (NASDAQ:PROK) are in the green today, despite recent sales from special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) sponsor Chamath Palihapitiya. Back in July of 2022, ProKidney agreed to merge with Social Capital Suvretta Holdings Corp III in a business combination valued at $2.64 billion. Since then, shares of PROK stock have plummeted by about 70%. Since the beginning of the year, PROK has fallen by about 59%.
Meanwhile, Palihapitiya recently unloaded a large chunk of the chronic kidney disease (CKD) treatment company. Between Oct. 11 and 13, he sold off 486,863 shares at average per share prices ranging between $2.63 and $3.84. These shares were sold through Social Capital (SC) PIPE Holding, which is owned by Palihapitiya. On the bright side, Palihapitya still owns 13.80 million shares following the sale through Social Capital PIPE Holdings, SC Master Holdings, and a family trust.
PROK Stock: Palihapitya Unloads Shares
This wasn’t Palihapitiya’s only sale this month. Between Oct. 5 and 10, he sold 277,621 shares at average per share prices between $4.20 and $4.76. Before that, he sold 1.7 million shares at an average per share price of $5.47 on Sept. 19.
Palihapitiya’s sales do not convey a strong sense of confidence in ProKidney, especially given his status as the SPAC sponsor. Meanwhile, the activity of other insiders hasn’t signaled confidence either. Since ProKidney’s SPAC debut, only one insider has purchased shares on the open market, and that is 10% owner Aaron Cowen. He purchased 3,868 shares on Aug. 30, 2022, at an average price of $8.67 per share. He purchased another 7,007 shares the following month at an average price of $6.99. Today, both of these purchases are severely underwater.
Since the SPAC debut, insiders have purchased $82,525 worth of shares on the open market, which is attributable to Cowen. On the other end, insiders have sold off $11.91 million of PROK on the open market, which is attributable to Palihapitiya. That nets out to a total of $11.83 million worth of shares sold.
Today, ProKidney remains an unprofitable, pre-revenue company. During the second quarter, net loss before non-controlling interest tallied in at $34.8 million, up from $22.1 million year-over-year (YOY). The company’s operating expenses also grew to $39.81 million compared to $20.73 million in the year-ago period.
On the date of publication, Eddie Pan did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
