AQR Capital Management LLC Purchases 362,175 Shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $BCRX

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 43.2%, purchasing an additional 362,175 shares, bringing its total ownership to approximately 1.2 million shares, valued at $9 million.
• Several analysts have given BioCryst Pharmaceuticals a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $16.70, indicating positive expectations for the stock's future performance.
• BioCryst Pharmaceuticals reported a 49.5% increase in revenue year-over-year, posting $163.35 million in the recent quarter, along with an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.15, exceeding estimates significantly.

AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCRX - Free Report) by 43.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,201,449 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 362,175 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.57% of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals worth $9,011,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth $32,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 1,161.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,918 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 5,449 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth $62,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth $79,000. 85.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $13.00 price objective on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $16.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Theresa Heggie sold 70,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.51, for a total value of $595,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 65,352 shares of the company's stock, valued at $556,145.52. The trade was a 51.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 5.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $8.01 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $8.47 and a 200-day moving average of $8.73. The stock has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a PE ratio of -44.50, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.13. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $6.01 and a 52-week high of $11.31.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The biotechnology company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $163.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $149.59 million. The company's revenue was up 49.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.06) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -0.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biotechnology company, develops oral small-molecule and protein therapeutics to treat rare diseases. The company markets peramivir injection, an intravenous neuraminidase inhibitor for the treatment of acute uncomplicated influenza under the RAPIVAB, RAPIACTA, and PERAMIFLU names; and ORLADEYO, an oral serine protease inhibitor to treat hereditary angioedema.

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