Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) Stock Moved Up to "Hold" by Canaccord Genuity Group

Key Points

• Canaccord Genuity upgraded Ascendis Pharma to “Hold,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy,” with 19 Buy ratings, two Hold ratings, and an average price target of $305.95.
• Ascendis shares opened at $245.15, up 0.7%, with a market capitalization of approximately $15.29 billion and a 52-week range of $188.07 to $282.15.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $1.03, missing expectations of $1.71, although revenue of $387.22 million exceeded the $376.75 million consensus estimate.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Canaccord Genuity Group to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Zacks reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $306.00 to $304.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $328.00 to $326.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 31st. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $360.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $305.95.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ ASND opened at $245.15 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.99 and a quick ratio of 2.32. Ascendis Pharma A/S has a 1 year low of $188.07 and a 1 year high of $282.15. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $242.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $237.18. The firm has a market cap of $15.29 billion, a PE ratio of 19.02 and a beta of 0.38.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The biotechnology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.71 by ($0.68). The business had revenue of $387.22 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $376.75 million. Ascendis Pharma A/S had a net margin of 70.99% and a return on equity of 32.54%. On average, research analysts forecast that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post 3.43 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Mads Bodenhoff sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.19, for a total transaction of $810,570.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 3,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $810,570. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jean-Jacques Bienaimé purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $246.33 per share, with a total value of $492,660.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 2,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at $714,357. The trade was a 222.22% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 40.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ascendis Pharma A/S

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Perceptive Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 41.6% during the first quarter. Perceptive Advisors LLC now owns 1,531,421 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $350,282,000 after acquiring an additional 450,000 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 243.0% during the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 251,833 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $56,907,000 after purchasing an additional 178,415 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S during the 1st quarter valued at $26,837,000. Troluce Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in the first quarter worth $22,782,000. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in the second quarter worth $24,581,000.

About Ascendis Pharma A/S

Ascendis Pharma A/S is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for rare diseases. The company uses its proprietary TransCon technology platform to design long-acting medicines intended to improve treatment convenience, maintain controlled drug exposure, and address unmet medical needs.

Its commercial products include SKYTROFA (lonape­gsomatropin-tcgd), a once-weekly growth hormone treatment for children with growth hormone deficiency, and YORVIPATH (palopegteriparatide), a once-daily therapy for adults with hypoparathyroidism.

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