Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:LXRX) Stock Rated "Hold" by Sell-Side Brokerages

Key Points

• Lexicon Pharmaceuticals has a consensus “Hold” rating from five brokerages, with three buys, one hold and one sell. The average 12-month price target is $5.70, while Cantor Fitzgerald set an $8.00 target with an overweight rating.
• Institutional ownership remains substantial at 74.70%, with several hedge funds increasing their positions during the first and second quarters.
• LXRX opened at $1.49, near its 52-week low, after the company reported a quarterly EPS loss of $0.06 versus an expected loss of $0.05 and revenue of $0.69 million, well below the $3.99 million estimate.

Shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:LXRX - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Hold" from the five brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $5.70.

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Zacks Research cut Lexicon Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, September 28th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $8.00 price target on the stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lexicon Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 43.6% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 27,459 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 8,335 shares during the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd raised its position in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 69.4% in the second quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 43,200 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 17,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AXQ Capital LP lifted its stake in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 126.9% during the second quarter. AXQ Capital LP now owns 45,727 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $110,000 after buying an additional 25,577 shares during the period. 74.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of LXRX opened at $1.49 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $1.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2.06. The stock has a market cap of $662.99 million, a PE ratio of -9.93 and a beta of 1.07. Lexicon Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $1.10 and a 1-year high of $2.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 13.37 and a quick ratio of 13.29.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LXRX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.06) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $0.69 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.99 million. Lexicon Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 37.53% and a negative net margin of 147.38%. As a group, analysts forecast that Lexicon Pharmaceuticals will post -0.17 EPS for the current year.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing medicines for serious and chronic diseases. The company uses its drug discovery platform to identify small-molecule treatments designed to target specific biological pathways, with an emphasis on metabolic, cardiovascular and neurological conditions.

Lexicon's commercial products include INPEFA (sotagliflozin), an oral medicine approved in the United States to reduce the risk of cardiovascular death, hospitalization for heart failure and urgent heart-failure visits in certain adults with heart failure or type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.