Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Takes Position in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $TARS

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:TARS) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 118,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,478,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in TARS. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $242,705,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth $176,834,000. Deep Track Capital LP boosted its position in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 71.4% in the 3rd quarter. Deep Track Capital LP now owns 3,000,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $178,290,000 after buying an additional 1,250,000 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $75,099,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 34.1% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,930,325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $158,062,000 after acquiring an additional 491,326 shares in the last quarter. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Katherine Goodrich sold 2,954 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.08, for a total value of $183,384.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,233 shares in the company, valued at $138,624.64. This represents a 56.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Jeffrey S. Farrow sold 14,396 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.95, for a total transaction of $877,436.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 56,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,462,020.95. This trade represents a 20.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 39,850 shares of company stock worth $2,452,821. 9.64% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:TARS opened at $71.92 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.17, a current ratio of 3.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $48.20 and a fifty-two week high of $85.25. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $64.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.29. The company has a market cap of $3.16 billion, a PE ratio of -65.98 and a beta of 0.53.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:TARS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.43) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.19) by ($0.24). Tarsus Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 13.53% and a negative net margin of 7.67%.The company had revenue of $173.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $169.65 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -2.06 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on TARS. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from $90.00 to $89.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 price objective on shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Tarsus Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $90.50.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals Profile

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel therapies for diseases of the eye and ocular surface. The company’s research platform centers on neuro‐effector modulation to address underlying disease mechanisms rather than solely treating symptoms. Tarsus’s lead candidate, OC-01 (varenicline solution), is an intranasal formulation in Phase 3 development for the treatment of dry eye disease, a condition affecting millions worldwide and associated with significant patient discomfort and reduced quality of life.

In addition to its dry eye program, Tarsus is advancing preclinical and early‐stage programs targeting other ophthalmic indications, including allergic conjunctivitis and retinal disorders.