5,295 Ascendis Pharma A/S $ASND Shares Acquired by China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• China Universal Asset Management increased its Ascendis Pharma stake by 54% in the third quarter, purchasing 5,295 shares and bringing its total holdings to 15,093 shares worth approximately $3.44 million.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish on Ascendis Pharma, with 19 Buy ratings and two Holds. The stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $305.95.
• Ascendis Pharma reported quarterly revenue of $387.22 million, exceeding estimates, but adjusted earnings of $1.03 per share fell short of the $1.71 consensus forecast.

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND - Free Report) by 54.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,093 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 5,295 shares during the period. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Ascendis Pharma A/S were worth $3,442,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Personal CFO Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $347,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 34.0% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 272 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 103.4% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 240 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 94.9% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 304 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 54.8% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 667 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $152,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ASND. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 10th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $327.00 price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $304.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a report on Friday, September 25th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $360.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $305.95.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ASND opened at $253.00 on Friday. Ascendis Pharma A/S has a 12-month low of $188.07 and a 12-month high of $282.15. The company has a market cap of $15.78 billion, a PE ratio of 19.63 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $242.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $237.80. The company has a current ratio of 2.99, a quick ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The biotechnology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.71 by ($0.68). The business had revenue of $387.22 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $376.75 million. Ascendis Pharma A/S had a net margin of 70.99% and a return on equity of 32.54%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post 3.43 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ascendis Pharma A/S news, Director Jean-Jacques Bienaimé purchased 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $246.33 per share, with a total value of $492,660.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 2,900 shares in the company, valued at $714,357. This trade represents a 222.22% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Mads Bodenhoff sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $810,570. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 40.00% of the company's stock.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Profile

Ascendis Pharma A/S 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 treatment convenience, maintain controlled drug exposure, and address unmet medical needs.

Its commercial products include SKYTROFA (lonape­gsomatropin-tcgd), a once-weekly growth hormone treatment for children with growth hormone deficiency, and YORVIPATH (palopegteriparatide), a once-daily therapy for adults with hypoparathyroidism.

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.