Assembly Biosciences (NASDAQ:ASMB) Price Target Cut to $48.00 by Analysts at UBS Group

Key Points

• UBS Group lowered Assembly Biosciences’ price target from $52 to $48 while maintaining a “Buy” rating, implying 145.31% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive: MarketBeat reports a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.50, despite one “Sell” rating.
• Assembly Biosciences shares traded near their one-year low at $19.57, while the company recently exceeded quarterly EPS and revenue expectations, reporting a $0.20 per-share loss and $13.37 million in revenue.

Assembly Biosciences (NASDAQ:ASMB - Get Free Report) had its price target reduced by UBS Group from $52.00 to $48.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the biopharmaceutical company's stock. UBS Group's price target would suggest a potential upside of 145.31% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Assembly Biosciences from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Assembly Biosciences in a report on Thursday, October 15th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of Assembly Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Finally, Mizuho set a $53.00 price objective on shares of Assembly Biosciences in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $46.50.

Assembly Biosciences Price Performance

Assembly Biosciences stock traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $19.57. 27,950 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 190,426. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $25.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $398.40 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.19 and a beta of 1.26. Assembly Biosciences has a 1 year low of $19.25 and a 1 year high of $39.71.

Assembly Biosciences (NASDAQ:ASMB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.72) by $0.52. Assembly Biosciences had a negative return on equity of 0.02% and a negative net margin of 0.06%. The firm had revenue of $13.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.60 million. Research analysts forecast that Assembly Biosciences will post 2.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Assembly Biosciences

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Assembly Biosciences by 671.5% in the second quarter. Seven Fleet Capital Management LP now owns 433,147 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $11,903,000 after acquiring an additional 377,000 shares during the period. Stempoint Capital LP boosted its position in Assembly Biosciences by 18.3% in the 1st quarter. Stempoint Capital LP now owns 185,435 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $5,146,000 after purchasing an additional 28,707 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Assembly Biosciences during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $660,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Assembly Biosciences by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 849,309 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $23,479,000 after purchasing an additional 11,384 shares during the period. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its holdings in shares of Assembly Biosciences by 43.7% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 34,214 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $940,000 after purchasing an additional 10,410 shares in the last quarter. 19.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Assembly Biosciences

Assembly Biosciences, Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing oral therapeutics for serious viral infections. The company's research programs target chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and herpesvirus infections, including herpes simplex virus (HSV), with the goal of addressing diseases for which existing treatments may not provide adequate cures or long-term control.

Assembly's pipeline includes novel antiviral candidates designed to interfere with essential stages of viral replication.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.