American Century Companies Inc. Boosts Stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S $ASND

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 13.5%, owning approximately 0.76% of the company, valued at $72 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Ascendis Pharma A/S reported an earnings per share (EPS) of ($0.93), exceeding analysts' expectations of ($1.42), with revenues of $216.28 million for the quarter.
• Several major investment firms reaffirmed their positive outlook on Ascendis Pharma A/S, with upgraded price targets, including UBS Group's target of $307.00 and Wells Fargo's target of $295.00.

American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND - Free Report) by 13.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 462,171 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 54,877 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned 0.76% of Ascendis Pharma A/S worth $72,034,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 413.1% during the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 18,032 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $2,810,000 after purchasing an additional 14,518 shares in the last quarter. Pursue Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S during the first quarter worth $226,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 57,077 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $7,858,000 after purchasing an additional 629 shares in the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp acquired a new position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S during the first quarter worth $236,000. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S during the first quarter worth $332,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASND has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $295.00 target price (up from $289.00) on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Ascendis Pharma A/S from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Wedbush upped their target price on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $212.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $201.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $243.36.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Trading Up 0.8%

ASND traded up $1.50 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $194.30. 308,107 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 566,559. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $178.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $163.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -37.66 and a beta of 0.41. Ascendis Pharma A/S has a 1-year low of $111.09 and a 1-year high of $199.99.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.93) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.42) by $0.49. The company had revenue of $216.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $163.17 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post -4.34 EPS for the current year.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Company Profile

Ascendis Pharma A/S, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing therapies for unmet medical needs. It offers SKYTROFA for treating patients with growth hormone deficiency (GHD). The company is also developing a pipeline of three independent endocrinology rare disease product candidates in clinical development, as well as focuses on advancing oncology therapeutic candidates.