National Pension Service Sells 15,042 Shares of Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. $NBIX

Key Points

• National Pension Service reduced its Neurocrine Biosciences stake by 48% in the second quarter, selling 15,042 shares and retaining 16,310 shares valued at approximately $2.75 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.59% of NBIX.
• Neurocrine reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.85 versus the $1.65 consensus estimate and revenue of $959 million, up 39.5% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable: NBIX has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and a $201.09 average price target, while recent targets rose as high as $222.

National Pension Service cut its stake in Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX - Free Report) by 48.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,310 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,042 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service's holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences were worth $2,749,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 10.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 583,827 shares of the company's stock valued at $76,913,000 after purchasing an additional 55,723 shares during the last quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. acquired a new stake in Neurocrine Biosciences during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,510,000. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. bought a new stake in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 4th quarter valued at $1,866,000. Summit Global Investments acquired a new position in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,959,000. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in the second quarter valued at about $1,927,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.59% of the company's stock.

Neurocrine Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of NBIX opened at $156.22 on Monday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $164.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $151.42. Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.14 and a 12 month high of $186.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.38.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $1.20. Neurocrine Biosciences had a return on equity of 22.43% and a net margin of 20.91%.The company had revenue of $959.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $891.16 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.65 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. will post 7.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Guggenheim increased their price target on Neurocrine Biosciences from $200.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $200.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $198.00 target price on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Wedbush upped their price target on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $185.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Neurocrine Biosciences from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $201.09.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Ingrid Delaet sold 4,367 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.02, for a total transaction of $790,514.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 16,225 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,937,049.50. This trade represents a 21.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Darin Lippoldt sold 10,000 shares of Neurocrine Biosciences stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.60, for a total transaction of $1,796,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 54,729 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,829,328.40. This represents a 15.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 40,188 shares of company stock worth $7,118,633. 4.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Neurocrine Biosciences

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing medicines for neurological, neuroendocrine and psychiatric disorders. The company develops therapies for conditions with significant unmet medical needs, using expertise in neuroscience and endocrine biology.

Its primary commercial product is INGREZZA (valbenazine), a vesicular monoamine transporter 2 inhibitor approved in the United States for the treatment of tardive dyskinesia and chorea associated with Huntington's disease.

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