General American Investors Co. Inc. Buys 167,195 Shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $SPRY

Key Points

• General American Investors Co. Inc. increased its stake in ARS Pharmaceuticals by 29.9% in the first quarter, buying 167,195 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 727,154 shares worth about $5.84 million.
• Institutional interest in the stock remains high, with 68.16% of shares owned by institutional investors. Several other hedge funds also added to their positions during recent quarters.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but generally constructive: ARS Pharmaceuticals has a Moderate Buy consensus rating and an average price target of $28.20, despite recent insider sales and weaker-than-expected quarterly earnings.

General American Investors Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPRY - Free Report) by 29.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 727,154 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 167,195 shares during the period. General American Investors Co. Inc. owned about 0.73% of ARS Pharmaceuticals worth $5,839,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,803 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 982 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 33,994 shares of the company's stock worth $596,000 after purchasing an additional 1,234 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 15,139 shares of the company's stock worth $176,000 after buying an additional 1,532 shares during the last quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. increased its position in ARS Pharmaceuticals by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 202,407 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,358,000 after buying an additional 1,787 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its position in ARS Pharmaceuticals by 52.8% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 5,215 shares of the company's stock valued at $91,000 after buying an additional 1,803 shares in the last quarter. 68.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SPRY has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen raised ARS Pharmaceuticals from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Leerink Partners reduced their price objective on shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Northland Securities started coverage on shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on ARS Pharmaceuticals from $12.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, ARS Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $28.20.

Insider Activity

In other ARS Pharmaceuticals news, insider Alexander A. Fitzpatrick sold 3,355 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total transaction of $33,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 90,910 shares in the company, valued at $909,100. The trade was a 3.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Eric Karas sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 12,176 shares of the company's stock, valued at $121,760. This trade represents a 67.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 33.80% of the company's stock.

ARS Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

ARS Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $7.94. 1,397,483 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,836,345. ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $6.66 and a 12 month high of $18.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.79, a current ratio of 4.94 and a quick ratio of 4.77. The business has a 50 day moving average of $8.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $9.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $788.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.95 and a beta of 0.95.

ARS Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SPRY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 15th. The company reported ($0.61) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.53) by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $22.68 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.20 million. ARS Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 153.61% and a negative net margin of 200.00%. As a group, research analysts predict that ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

About ARS Pharmaceuticals

ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, develops treatments for severe allergic reactions. The company is developing neffy, a needle-free and low-dose intranasal epinephrine nasal spray for the emergency treatment of Type I allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. It serves healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers. ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.

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