ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:ACAD)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $23.72, but opened at $26.38. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $26.3610, with a volume of 787,163 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ACAD shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Bank of America upgraded ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Citizens Jmp upped their target price on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Citigroup dropped their target price on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Eleven 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.62.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $21.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.45. The stock has a market cap of $4.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 29.33 and a beta of 0.83.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04 by ($0.02). ACADIA Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 34.30% and a return on equity of 9.61%. The firm had revenue of $268.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $280.25 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.11 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. will post 0.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Mark C. Schneyer sold 3,506 shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.79, for a total value of $76,395.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 66,145 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,441,299.55. This trade represents a 5.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider James Kihara sold 5,401 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 24,509 shares in the company, valued at $519,100.62. This represents a 18.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 13,978 shares of company stock valued at $302,819. Company insiders own 26.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of ACAD. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 67.5% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 958 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 304.5% during the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,335 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 277.5% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,612 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 1,185 shares during the period. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG bought a new stake in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $52,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.71% of the company’s stock.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.