Candriam S.C.A. Acquires 43,338 Shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S $ASND

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in Ascendis Pharma by 23.2% in the first quarter, adding 43,338 shares to bring its total holding to 230,278 shares worth about $52.7 million.
• Several analysts remain bullish on ASND, with recent ratings including buy and outperform calls and an average target price of $295.67.
• Ascendis Pharma reported Q1 earnings of $0.32 per share, beating estimates, while shares were trading around $270.45 and near their 52-week high.

Candriam S.C.A. grew its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND - Free Report) by 23.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 230,278 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 43,338 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. owned about 0.37% of Ascendis Pharma A/S worth $52,671,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in Ascendis Pharma A/S during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Arax Advisory Partners increased its position in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 212.2% in the fourth quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 153 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 111.9% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 214 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 113 shares in the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on ASND. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $342.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $273.00 price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Monday, May 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $355.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $295.67.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of ASND opened at $270.45 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $16.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.19 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Ascendis Pharma A/S has a 1 year low of $160.86 and a 1 year high of $282.15. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $239.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $230.15.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $285.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $362.47 million. On average, equities analysts expect that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Ascendis Pharma A/S

In other news, Director Jean Jacques Bienaime bought 400 shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $237.80 per share, with a total value of $95,120.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 400 shares of the company's stock, valued at $95,120. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Flemming Steen Jensen sold 19,460 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.49, for a total value of $4,641,015.40. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 40.00% of the company's stock.

About Ascendis Pharma A/S

Ascendis Pharma A/S is a Denmark‐based biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative therapies for rare endocrine diseases. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Hellerup, the company leverages its proprietary TransCon drug delivery platform to create long‐acting prodrugs designed to improve safety, efficacy and patient convenience. Ascendis Pharma maintains research and development operations in Europe and the United States, with clinical studies spanning North America, Europe and Asia.

The company's lead product, lonapegsomatropin (Skytrofa®), is a once‐weekly growth hormone therapy approved by the U.S.

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.