Annexon, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANNX) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate Annexon a "Moderate Buy": seven analysts give a consensus of five buys, one hold and one sell with an average 1-year price target of $17.00, well above the current share price.
• Insiders have been sellers: the EVP and CFO sold shares on Feb. 18, and insiders sold 32,513 shares (~$165,973) in the last quarter while still owning 11.87% of the company.
• Large institutional accumulation: several funds materially increased stakes in the fourth quarter (notably Adage, State Street, Nuveen and BVF), with Adage now holding 5.5 million shares.

Annexon, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANNX - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has assigned a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $17.00.

A number of research analysts recently commented on ANNX shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Annexon in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Chardan Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $16.00 target price on shares of Annexon in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Annexon in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Michael Overdorf sold 6,225 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.10, for a total transaction of $31,747.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 124,464 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $634,766.40. This trade represents a 4.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jennifer Lew sold 7,851 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.11, for a total value of $40,118.61. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 113,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $581,339.15. The trade was a 6.46% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 32,513 shares of company stock valued at $165,973 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 11.87% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Annexon

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its position in shares of Annexon by 266.7% during the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 5,500,000 shares of the company's stock worth $27,610,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000,000 shares during the last quarter. Mak Capital One LLC bought a new position in shares of Annexon in the fourth quarter worth about $14,852,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Annexon by 126.9% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,652,185 shares of the company's stock worth $23,354,000 after purchasing an additional 2,601,877 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC increased its stake in Annexon by 327.1% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 2,915,324 shares of the company's stock worth $14,635,000 after buying an additional 2,232,766 shares during the period. Finally, BVF Inc. IL increased its stake in Annexon by 30.4% in the 4th quarter. BVF Inc. IL now owns 9,128,080 shares of the company's stock worth $45,823,000 after buying an additional 2,128,080 shares during the period.

Annexon Stock Down 0.9%

Annexon stock traded down $0.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $5.20. 317,300 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,630,140. Annexon has a 12-month low of $1.28 and a 12-month high of $7.18. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $5.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4.47. The company has a market cap of $622.21 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.66 and a beta of 1.15.

Annexon Company Profile

Annexon Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of complement-targeted therapies for patients with neurodegenerative and neuroimmune diseases. The company's research platform centers on the inhibition of the C1 complex, a key initiator of the classical complement pathway implicated in several rare and life-threatening disorders. By selectively targeting upstream complement activation, Annexon aims to prevent the aberrant immune-mediated damage that characterizes conditions such as Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) and autoimmune neuropathies.

At the core of Annexon's pipeline is ANX005, a humanized monoclonal antibody directed against the C1q subcomponent, currently in Phase 2 clinical trials for acute GBS and chronic neurodegenerative indications.

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