Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Purchases 3,606,566 Shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $BCRX

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management S.A. drastically increased its stake in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 25,631.2% during the second quarter, now owning approximately 1.73% of the company valued at $32.4 million.
• Following a recent transaction, Director Theresa Heggie sold 70,000 shares of BioCryst, representing a 51.72% decrease in her ownership.
• Analysts have raised price targets for BioCryst Pharmaceuticals recently, with Bank of America increasing its target from $13.00 to $15.00 and Needham & Company setting a target of $17.00, reflecting a generally positive outlook on the stock.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCRX - Free Report) by 25,631.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,620,637 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,606,566 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 1.73% of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals worth $32,441,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Man Group plc grew its holdings in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 46.3% in the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 89,954 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $676,000 after purchasing an additional 28,481 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 38.2% in the 4th quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 14,828 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $112,000 after buying an additional 4,097 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 32.6% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 68,004 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $511,000 after buying an additional 16,732 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $3,385,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 401,111 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,016,000 after buying an additional 11,581 shares during the last quarter. 85.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on BCRX. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $13.00 price target on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, June 30th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $16.70.

Insider Buying and Selling at BioCryst Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Theresa Heggie sold 70,000 shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.51, for a total transaction of $595,700.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 65,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,145.52. The trade was a 51.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 5.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.7%

NASDAQ BCRX traded up $0.21 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $7.91. 2,063,549 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,532,131. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $6.01 and a 52 week high of $11.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.66 billion, a P/E ratio of -43.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.13. The business's fifty day moving average price is $8.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $8.72.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The biotechnology company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $163.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $149.59 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.06) EPS. The company's revenue was up 49.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -0.36 EPS 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.