Tarsus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:TARS) Upgraded by Barclays to Strong-Buy Rating

Key Points

• Barclays upgraded Tarsus Pharmaceuticals to “strong buy,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy” with a $94 price target.
• TARS shares rose 1.8% to $79.03, below their 52-week high of $91.53; the company reported quarterly revenue above estimates but an adjusted loss per share wider than expected.
• Insiders sold roughly 48,031 shares worth $4 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors and hedge funds own approximately 90% of the company.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:TARS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Barclays to a "strong-buy" rating in a report released on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

TARS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from $88.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Guggenheim decreased their price target on Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from $90.00 to $89.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, July 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Tarsus Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $94.00.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.8%

TARS stock opened at $79.03 on Wednesday. Tarsus Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $51.57 and a one year high of $91.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.47 billion, a PE ratio of -72.50 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 3.17 and a current ratio of 3.20. The company has a fifty day moving average of $69.02 and a 200-day moving average of $66.73.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:TARS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.43) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.19) by ($0.24). The firm had revenue of $173.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $169.65 million. Tarsus Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 13.53% and a negative net margin of 7.67%. As a group, analysts expect that Tarsus Pharmaceuticals will post -2.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Tarsus Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CEO Bobak Azamian sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.56, for a total transaction of $905,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 827,991 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,982,864.96. This represents a 1.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director William Link, PhD sold 12,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.38, for a total value of $979,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 94,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,405,891.06. The trade was a 11.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 48,031 shares of company stock worth $4,004,227. 9.64% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Tarsus Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its position in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 66.5% during the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 4,755 shares of the company's stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 22.7% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 295,824 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,619,000 after purchasing an additional 54,791 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S purchased a new stake in shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $106,000. Pale Fire Capital SE grew its stake in shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 73.4% during the 2nd quarter. Pale Fire Capital SE now owns 9,802 shares of the company's stock valued at $617,000 after buying an additional 4,150 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 295.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 38,090 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,429,000 after buying an additional 28,447 shares during the period. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Tarsus Pharmaceuticals

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a commercial-stage ophthalmic pharmaceutical company focused on developing and marketing treatments for eye conditions with significant unmet medical needs. The company's lead product is XDEMVY (lotilaner ophthalmic solution) 0.25%, a prescription eye drop approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2023 for the treatment of Demodex blepharitis, a common eyelid disorder associated with an infestation of Demodex mites.

XDEMVY is designed to target and eliminate Demodex mites, addressing an underlying cause of the disease rather than only managing its symptoms.

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