Mizuho Upgrades Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) to Hold

Key Points

• Mizuho upgraded Neurocrine Biosciences to “Hold”, while the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $201.09.
• Neurocrine reported a strong quarter, with EPS of $2.85 versus expectations of $1.65 and revenue of $959 million, up 39.5% year over year.
• NBIX opened at $151.83, below the consensus target, while insiders sold approximately $7.6 million worth of shares over the past 90 days; institutional investors own 92.59% of the stock.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Mizuho to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on Neurocrine Biosciences from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $144.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Neurocrine Biosciences has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $201.09.

Neurocrine Biosciences Trading Up 1.6%

NBIX opened at $151.83 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $15.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.38. Neurocrine Biosciences has a 12 month low of $122.14 and a 12 month high of $186.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $162.42 and a 200 day moving average of $152.00.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $1.20. The business had revenue of $959.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $891.16 million. Neurocrine Biosciences had a return on equity of 22.43% and a net margin of 20.91%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.65 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Neurocrine Biosciences will post 7.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Neurocrine Biosciences

In other Neurocrine Biosciences news, Director Leslie Norwalk sold 1,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.01, for a total value of $227,512.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,588 shares of the company's stock, valued at $289,031.88. This represents a 44.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider David W. Boyer sold 826 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.45, for a total value of $130,053.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 8,722 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,373,278.90. The trade was a 8.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 43,325 shares of company stock valued at $7,611,976. Company insiders own 4.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Neurocrine Biosciences

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NBIX. DJE Kapital AG purchased a new position in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Basecamp Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Neurocrine Biosciences by 582.9% in the 1st quarter. Basecamp Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 239 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. TrinityBridge Ltd bought a new position in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 2nd quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences during the second quarter worth approximately $48,000. 92.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Neurocrine Biosciences Company Profile

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing medicines for neurological, neuroendocrine and psychiatric disorders. The company develops therapies for conditions with significant unmet medical needs, using expertise in neuroscience and endocrine biology.

Its primary commercial product is INGREZZA (valbenazine), a vesicular monoamine transporter 2 inhibitor approved in the United States for the treatment of tardive dyskinesia and chorea associated with Huntington's disease.

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