Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC $JAZZ Shares Acquired by California State Teachers Retirement System

Key Points

• California State Teachers Retirement System dramatically increased its Jazz Pharmaceuticals stake by acquiring 15.65 million additional shares in the second quarter, bringing its ownership to 15.71 million shares, or 24.21% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 89.14% of JAZZ.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $285.50. Recent targets range as high as $322, although the company’s latest quarterly EPS of $5.71 missed the $6.18 consensus estimate.
• Jazz reported $1.21 billion in quarterly revenue, up 15.5% year over year and above estimates, while shares opened at $240.48. Insiders sold 98,078 shares worth approximately $24.4 million during the last quarter.

California State Teachers Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC (NASDAQ:JAZZ - Free Report) by 24,585.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,714,136 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,650,479 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System owned 24.21% of Jazz Pharmaceuticals worth $3,786,635,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in Jazz Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $47,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $61,000. Westpac Banking Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new position in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.14% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America boosted their price target on Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $281.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $283.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Jazz Pharmaceuticals from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 target price on Jazz Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Jazz Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $285.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Renee D. Gala sold 2,000 shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.03, for a total value of $486,060.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 143,394 shares in the company, valued at $34,849,043.82. The trade was a 1.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Mark Smith sold 1,157 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.55, for a total value of $266,746.35. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 9,680 shares in the company, valued at $2,231,724. This represents a 10.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 98,078 shares of company stock valued at $24,421,460. Corporate insiders own 4.10% of the company's stock.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $240.48 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $15.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.22 and a beta of 0.36. Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC has a 52-week low of $123.88 and a 52-week high of $266.38. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $249.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $223.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:JAZZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The specialty pharmaceutical company reported $5.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.18 by ($0.47). Jazz Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 20.45% and a return on equity of 33.97%. The firm had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($8.25) EPS. Jazz Pharmaceuticals's revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC will post 21.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals Profile

Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc NASDAQ: JAZZ is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing medicines for disorders in neuroscience and oncology. The company concentrates on conditions with significant unmet medical needs, including sleep disorders, epilepsy, rare diseases and certain cancers.

Its neuroscience portfolio includes Xywav and Xyrem, oxybate-based treatments for narcolepsy, with Xywav also indicated for idiopathic hypersomnia in adults. Jazz also markets Epidiolex in the United States, known as Epidyolex in some international markets, a cannabidiol-based medicine for seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, Dravet syndrome and tuberous sclerosis complex.

In oncology, Jazz's products include Rylaze, an asparaginase therapy used as part of treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia and lymphoblastic lymphoma; Zepzelca, used for certain patients with metastatic small cell lung cancer; and Vyxeos, a chemotherapy formulation for certain cases of newly diagnosed therapy-related acute myeloid leukemia or AML with myelodysplasia-related changes.

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