Needham & Company LLC Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD) Stock

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD) had its price objective boosted by Needham & Company LLC from $38.00 to $41.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Needham & Company LLC’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 39.41% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $37.00 target price on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.69.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.1%

NASDAQ:ACAD opened at $29.41 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $5.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.25, a P/E/G ratio of 23.91 and a beta of 0.81. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $24.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.30. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $19.69 and a fifty-two week high of $29.76.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $308.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $296.55 million. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 33.42% and a return on equity of 9.03%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.16 EPS. Research analysts forecast that ACADIA Pharmaceuticals will post 0.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider James Kihara sold 5,401 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.18, for a total value of $114,393.18. Following the sale, the insider owned 24,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $519,100.62. This represents a 18.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Elizabeth H.Z. Thompson sold 16,558 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.13, for a total value of $432,660.54. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $496,313.22. This represents a 46.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 42,100 shares of company stock worth $1,134,287. 26.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $569,634,000. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,910,733 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $211,296,000 after purchasing an additional 655,257 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 47.3% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,343,868 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $74,435,000 after buying an additional 1,073,834 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,239,451 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $86,539,000 after acquiring an additional 106,807 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 8.0% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,155,160 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $70,222,000 after purchasing an additional 234,186 shares in the last quarter. 96.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapies for central nervous system (CNS) disorders. Established in 1993 and headquartered in San Diego, California, ACADIA’s research centers concentrate on conditions with significant unmet medical needs, including Parkinson’s disease psychosis, Alzheimer’s disease psychosis, and schizophrenia. The company utilizes a range of scientific platforms, including selective receptor modulation and precision-targeted compounds, to advance its portfolio of small-molecule therapeutics.

The company’s flagship product, NUPLAZID® (pimavanserin), received U.S.