Corcept Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CORT) Hits New 52-Week Low After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated (NASDAQ:CORT) reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday after Wolfe Research downgraded the stock from a peer perform rating to an underperform rating. Wolfe Research now has a $30.00 price target on the stock. Corcept Therapeutics traded as low as $36.00 and last traded at $35.9490, with a volume of 1855704 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.19.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on CORT. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of Corcept Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Zacks Research upgraded Corcept Therapeutics from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Corcept Therapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Corcept Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 18th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective on shares of Corcept Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Corcept Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $111.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Corcept Therapeutics

In related news, CEO Joseph K. Belanoff sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.77, for a total transaction of $3,190,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,701,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $215,488,284.90. This trade represents a 1.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider William Guyer sold 20,000 shares of Corcept Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.08, for a total transaction of $1,601,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $98,898.80. This trade represents a 94.18% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 196,700 shares of company stock valued at $15,474,198 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 20.50% of the company’s stock.

Key Stores Impacting Corcept Therapeutics

Here are the key news stories impacting Corcept Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company says it will meet with the FDA to discuss next steps for relacorilant, creating a possible regulatory path forward (could mitigate some downside if the meeting yields a clear path or resubmission plan). Benzinga: FDA setback
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading in CORT was temporarily halted this morning pending news, reflecting market nervousness and contributing to the abrupt price move (resume could see continued volatility).
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider option activity: Gary Charles Robb exercised options worth about $10.96M, an execution that may be routine or strategic depending on whether shares were sold. Benzinga: Robb exercise
• Neutral Sentiment: Major executive exercise: Joseph K. Belanoff exercised options worth roughly $41.5M; large insider option exercises can be neutral to mixed in signal depending on follow-up sales. Benzinga: Belanoff exercise
• Negative Sentiment: FDA declined to approve relacorilant for the targeted rare hormonal disorder — the fundamental regulatory setback is the main driver of the selloff and increased risk to near-term revenue expectations. Reuters: FDA declines approval
• Negative Sentiment: Major negative headlines and commentary (stock plunge coverage) are amplifying selling pressure and investor fear. Investing.com: Stock plunges after FDA rejects drug
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual options activity: traders bought ~6,120 put contracts (≈324% above typical put volume), signaling speculative/hedging downside bets that can accelerate declines and volatility.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst reaction: Wolfe Research cut CORT to “underperform” with a $30 target, adding downward pressure from investor-facing research. The Fly: Wolfe Research downgrade

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Corcept Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CORT. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new position in shares of Corcept Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Corcept Therapeutics by 163.6% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 311 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Corcept Therapeutics in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Huntington National Bank increased its position in shares of Corcept Therapeutics by 54.0% in the second quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 479 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Corcept Therapeutics by 598.5% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 461 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 395 shares in the last quarter. 93.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Corcept Therapeutics Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 3.14 and a quick ratio of 3.07. The firm has a market cap of $3.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.68 and a beta of 0.20. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $78.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $75.58.

Corcept Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CORT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The biotechnology company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.02). Corcept Therapeutics had a return on equity of 15.99% and a net margin of 14.19%.The firm had revenue of $207.64 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $223.78 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated will post 1.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Corcept Therapeutics

Corcept Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing drugs that modulate the effects of cortisol, a hormone implicated in a range of severe metabolic, oncologic and psychiatric disorders. The company’s scientific platform centers on selectively targeting the glucocorticoid receptor to counteract the harmful consequences of excess cortisol, a strategy designed to address diseases with significant unmet medical needs.

The company’s flagship marketed product, Korlym (mifepristone), is approved in the United States for the treatment of hyperglycemia secondary to Cushing’s syndrome in patients who have type 2 diabetes or glucose intolerance and are not candidates for surgery.