Esperion Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ESPR) CFO Benjamin Halladay Sells 7,337 Shares

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESPR) CFO Benjamin Halladay sold 7,337 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.67, for a total value of $26,926.79. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 467,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,715,816.75. This represents a 1.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Esperion Therapeutics Trading Up 4.1%

ESPR stock traded up $0.15 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $3.80. The company had a trading volume of 4,097,221 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,496,053. Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $0.69 and a 52 week high of $4.13. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $3.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $2.28. The stock has a market cap of $908.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.60 and a beta of 1.01.

Esperion Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ESPR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $87.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $78.33 million. Analysts predict that Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. will post -0.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Esperion Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 72,705 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 4,979 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its stake in Esperion Therapeutics by 46.5% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 19,674 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 6,249 shares during the last quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. boosted its holdings in Esperion Therapeutics by 209.2% in the third quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 9,430 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 6,380 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 54.1% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 23,916 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 8,394 shares during the last quarter. Finally, North Star Investment Management Corp. increased its holdings in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 40.0% during the third quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 35,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $93,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on ESPR. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Esperion Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Esperion Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $9.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $16.00 target price on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a report on Friday, September 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $7.20.

Esperion Therapeutics Company Profile

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc, a pharmaceutical company, develops and commercializes medicines for the treatment of patients with elevated low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). Its marketed products include NEXLETOL (bempedoic acid) and NEXLIZET (bempedoic acid and ezetimibe) tablets that are oral, once-daily, non-statin medicines for the treatment of primary hyperlipidemia in adults with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia or atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease who require additional lowering of LDL-C.