Axsome Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AXSM) Rating Lowered to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Axsome Therapeutics from “hold” to “strong sell,” even as the broader analyst view remains Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $261.48.
• Axsome shares were trading up 6.9% at $236.95, near their 50-day average of $238.71 and below the recent 1-year high of $260.19.
• The company reported mixed quarterly results: EPS of -$1.26 missed estimates, while revenue of $191.2 million was roughly in line and rose 57.4% year over year.

Axsome Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AXSM - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages have also commented on AXSM. Truist Financial raised Axsome Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Axsome Therapeutics from $225.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Axsome Therapeutics from a "reduce" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Axsome Therapeutics in a report on Friday. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $280.00 target price on shares of Axsome Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Axsome Therapeutics has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $261.48.

Axsome Therapeutics Trading Up 6.9%

AXSM opened at $236.95 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -63.53 and a beta of 0.60. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $238.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $199.47. Axsome Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $96.09 and a 1-year high of $260.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.27, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.32.

Axsome Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AXSM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The company reported ($1.26) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.85) by ($0.41). The firm had revenue of $191.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $191.10 million. Axsome Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 26.59% and a negative return on equity of 267.16%. Axsome Therapeutics's revenue for the quarter was up 57.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Axsome Therapeutics will post -2.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Axsome Therapeutics news, Director Susan Mahony sold 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.21, for a total transaction of $71,163.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,129 shares in the company, valued at $267,810.09. This represents a 20.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Roger Jeffs sold 286 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.18, for a total value of $70,407.48. Following the transaction, the director owned 58,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,439,195.54. This represents a 0.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 155,852 shares of company stock valued at $37,230,112 over the last quarter. 20.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Axsome Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Axsome Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Hollencrest Capital Management increased its stake in Axsome Therapeutics by 400.0% during the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 200 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Axsome Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Axsome Therapeutics during the third quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Axsome Therapeutics by 65.4% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 268 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.49% of the company's stock.

About Axsome Therapeutics

Axsome Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing novel therapies for central nervous system (CNS) disorders. The company focuses on small-molecule drugs designed to address unmet medical needs in areas such as depression, migraine, narcolepsy and fibromyalgia. Axsome employs a precision medicine approach, leveraging pharmacologic innovation to target underlying mechanisms of disease and improve patient outcomes.

Axsome's pipeline includes several late-stage and approved product candidates.

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