Oppenheimer Initiates Coverage on Pacira BioSciences (NASDAQ:PCRX)

Key Points

• Oppenheimer initiated coverage of Pacira BioSciences with an “outperform” rating and a $32 price target, implying 29.55% potential upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: the stock has a consensus “hold” rating and an average price target of $30.14, based on four Buy, four Hold, and one Sell rating.
• Pacira recently exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.73 EPS versus a $0.65 estimate and $192.4 million in revenue, up 6.2% year over year.

Equities research analysts at Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Pacira BioSciences (NASDAQ:PCRX - Get Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage set an "outperform" rating and a $32.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer's target price would indicate a potential upside of 29.55% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of Pacira BioSciences in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Pacira BioSciences in a research report on Monday, August 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $30.00 price objective on the stock. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on shares of Pacira BioSciences from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Pacira BioSciences from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, August 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Pacira BioSciences from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $30.14.

Pacira BioSciences Stock Performance

Shares of PCRX stock opened at $24.70 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 3.94 and a current ratio of 5.04. The company has a market capitalization of $984.54 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 70.57 and a beta of 0.26. Pacira BioSciences has a one year low of $18.80 and a one year high of $27.66. The company's 50-day moving average is $25.34 and its 200 day moving average is $24.21.

Pacira BioSciences (NASDAQ:PCRX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.08. Pacira BioSciences had a net margin of 1.96% and a return on equity of 9.68%. The firm had revenue of $192.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $191.06 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.74 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Pacira BioSciences will post 1.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pacira BioSciences

In related news, insider Jonathan Slonin sold 3,040 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.23, for a total transaction of $70,619.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 216,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,026,600.32. The trade was a 1.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 6.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pacira BioSciences

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PCRX. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new position in Pacira BioSciences during the fourth quarter valued at $51,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pacira BioSciences during the 2nd quarter worth about $51,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Pacira BioSciences during the 1st quarter valued at about $46,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in Pacira BioSciences by 127.3% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,573 shares of the company's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in Pacira BioSciences in the 2nd quarter worth about $78,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.73% of the company's stock.

Pacira BioSciences Company Profile

Pacira BioSciences, Inc is a pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing non-opioid pain-management products. The company's therapies are intended to help manage acute and chronic pain while supporting efforts to reduce reliance on opioid medications.

Pacira's principal product is EXPAREL, an extended-release formulation of bupivacaine used for postsurgical pain management and regional analgesia. The company also markets ZILRETTA, an extended-release corticosteroid injection for osteoarthritis knee pain, and iovera, a device-based treatment that uses targeted cold therapy to temporarily block peripheral nerves and reduce pain.

Founded as Pacira Pharmaceuticals, the company changed its name to Pacira BioSciences in 2020 to reflect its broader focus on innovative pain therapies.

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