Wedbush Reiterates “Outperform” Rating for Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX)

Wedbush reissued their outperform rating on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning,RTT News reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on NBIX. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $137.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $96.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Neurocrine Biosciences from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on Neurocrine Biosciences from $158.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.00.

Neurocrine Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of NBIX opened at $118.92 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.77 billion, a PE ratio of 36.15, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $106.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.81. Neurocrine Biosciences has a fifty-two week low of $84.23 and a fifty-two week high of $157.98.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.62). The company had revenue of $572.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $587.06 million. Neurocrine Biosciences had a net margin of 14.49% and a return on equity of 13.38%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.20 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Neurocrine Biosciences will post 4.28 EPS for the current year.

Neurocrine Biosciences declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Friday, February 21st that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 4.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Neurocrine Biosciences

In other news, CFO Matt Abernethy sold 2,558 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.86, for a total value of $298,927.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 34,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,063,806.50. The trade was a 6.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Kevin Charles Gorman sold 5,844 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.69, for a total value of $681,936.36. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 521,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $60,867,604.42. This trade represents a 1.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 13,907 shares of company stock valued at $1,629,982. 4.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Neurocrine Biosciences

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NBIX. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences by 45.1% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 11,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,311,000 after buying an additional 3,688 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS raised its holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 36,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,993,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in Neurocrine Biosciences by 82.3% during the first quarter. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC now owns 8,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $946,000 after purchasing an additional 3,860 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,460,000. Finally, HighPoint Advisor Group LLC grew its position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 15.0% in the first quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the period. 92.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Neurocrine Biosciences Company Profile

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc discovers, develops, and markets pharmaceuticals for neurological, neuroendocrine, and neuropsychiatric disorders in the United States and internationally. The company’s products include INGREZZA for tardive dyskinesia and chorea associated with Huntington’s disease; ALKINDI for adrenal insufficiency; Efmody capsules for classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia; Orilissa tablets for endometriosis; and Oriahnn capsules to treat uterine fibroids.