ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPRY) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• ARS Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from seven research firms, with one analyst recommending a sell and five issuing buy ratings.
• The average 12-month price target for ARS Pharmaceuticals is $33.80, while the stock recently opened at $10.05.
• Institutional investors own 68.16% of the company, with major holdings increasing significantly in the third quarter.

Shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPRY - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seven research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $33.80.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Raymond James Financial set a $32.00 target price on shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, September 26th. Roth Capital started coverage on shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, September 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $40.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, October 8th.

ARS Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

SPRY stock opened at $10.05 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $993.24 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -20.51 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 5.98, a current ratio of 6.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. ARS Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $9.34 and a 12-month high of $18.90. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $11.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.06.

ARS Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SPRY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 13th. The company reported ($0.46) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.41) by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $15.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.92 million. ARS Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 42.74% and a negative return on equity of 21.85%. On average, analysts expect that ARS Pharmaceuticals will post -0.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Kathleen D. Scott sold 12,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total transaction of $187,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,042 shares in the company, valued at approximately $150,630. This represents a 55.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Richard E. Lowenthal sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.49, for a total transaction of $724,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,196,494 shares in the company, valued at $17,337,198.06. This represents a 4.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 112,500 shares of company stock worth $1,615,759. Company insiders own 33.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ARS Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Permanent Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $536,000. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals by 243.7% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,547 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,806 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals by 52.8% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 5,215 shares of the company's stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 1,803 shares in the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals by 7.3% during the second quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 80,846 shares of the company's stock worth $1,411,000 after acquiring an additional 5,524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rubric Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals by 25.8% during the second quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 1,294,878 shares of the company's stock worth $22,596,000 after acquiring an additional 265,777 shares in the last quarter. 68.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About ARS Pharmaceuticals

ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, develops treatments for severe allergic reactions. The company is developing neffy, a needle-free and low-dose intranasal epinephrine nasal spray for the emergency treatment of Type I allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. It serves healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers.

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