Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) Stock Rated "Buy" by Wall Street Brokerages

Key Points

• Wall Street maintains a bullish view: Twenty-one analysts give Ascendis Pharma a consensus “Buy” rating, including 19 buys and one strong buy. The average 12-month price target is $310.75, above the reported $225.60 share price.
• Institutional ownership increased: Several major investors expanded their positions, including Perceptive Advisors, which raised its holdings by 41.6%, and Pictet Asset Management, which increased its position by 243%.
• Shares have declined while quarterly results were mixed: ASND was down 2.2%, with its latest earnings per share of $1.03 missing estimates of $1.71, although quarterly revenue of $387.22 million exceeded the $376.75 million consensus forecast.

Shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from the twenty-one research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nineteen have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $310.75.

Several research analysts have issued reports on ASND shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ascendis Pharma A/S from a "sell (d)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $304.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $287.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $327.00 target price on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $328.00 to $326.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 31st.

Insider Activity at Ascendis Pharma A/S

In other news, SVP Mads Bodenhoff sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.19, for a total value of $810,570.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 3,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $810,570. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jean-Jacques Bienaimé purchased 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $246.33 per share, for a total transaction of $492,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,900 shares in the company, valued at $714,357. The trade was a 222.22% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 40.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ascendis Pharma A/S

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASND. Perceptive Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 41.6% during the first quarter. Perceptive Advisors LLC now owns 1,531,421 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $350,282,000 after purchasing an additional 450,000 shares during the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 106.3% in the fourth quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 352,109 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $75,084,000 after buying an additional 181,408 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 24.8% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 351,146 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $80,318,000 after buying an additional 69,673 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 243.0% during the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 251,833 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $56,907,000 after buying an additional 178,415 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. lifted its position in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 23.2% during the 1st quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 230,278 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $52,671,000 after buying an additional 43,338 shares in the last quarter.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of ASND opened at $225.60 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.32, a current ratio of 2.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $251.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $242.27. The stock has a market cap of $14.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.50 and a beta of 0.35. Ascendis Pharma A/S has a 12 month low of $186.05 and a 12 month high of $282.15.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 14th. The biotechnology company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.71 by ($0.68). The company had revenue of $387.22 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $376.75 million. Ascendis Pharma A/S had a net margin of 70.99% and a return on equity of 32.54%. Equities analysts predict that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post 3.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Ascendis Pharma A/S

Ascendis Pharma A/S NASDAQ: ASND is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for rare diseases. The company uses its proprietary TransCon technology platform to design long-acting medicines intended to improve the effectiveness, convenience, and tolerability of established treatments.

Ascendis' marketed products include Skytrofa (lonapegsomatropin-tcgd), a long-acting growth hormone approved for the treatment of growth hormone deficiency in children, and Yorvipath (palopegteriparatide), a hormone replacement therapy for adults with hypoparathyroidism.

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