Nordea Investment Management AB Increases Stake in Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. $NBIX

Key Points

• Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Neurocrine Biosciences by 81.3% in Q4 to 27,202 shares (worth $3.83M), and institutional investors now own 92.59% of the stock with large holdings from Dodge & Cox, JPMorgan, AQR and Norges Bank.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view with an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $175.10, following several recent target and rating updates from firms like Citigroup, TD Cowen, Wells Fargo and JPMorgan.
• Neurocrine missed EPS expectations in the latest quarter—reporting $1.88 EPS vs. a $2.36 consensus—but delivered $805.5M in revenue (up 28.3% y/y), and analysts forecast roughly 4.28 EPS for the current year.

Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX - Free Report) by 81.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 27,202 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 12,195 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB's holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences were worth $3,834,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dodge & Cox increased its stake in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 0.6% in the second quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 5,566,814 shares of the company's stock worth $699,693,000 after purchasing an additional 32,190 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,730,152 shares of the company's stock valued at $664,019,000 after buying an additional 468,405 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences by 83.7% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,773,648 shares of the company's stock worth $388,435,000 after buying an additional 1,263,633 shares during the period. Deerfield Management Company L.P. boosted its holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. now owns 1,184,345 shares of the company's stock worth $166,258,000 after buying an additional 16,543 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $122,278,000. 92.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on NBIX shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Neurocrine Biosciences from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 16th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Neurocrine Biosciences from $203.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Neurocrine Biosciences from $180.00 to $175.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Neurocrine Biosciences from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Neurocrine Biosciences from $176.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Neurocrine Biosciences currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $175.10.

Neurocrine Biosciences Price Performance

NBIX opened at $128.32 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.32. Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. has a one year low of $84.23 and a one year high of $160.18. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $131.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $139.52.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by ($0.48). Neurocrine Biosciences had a return on equity of 16.48% and a net margin of 16.73%.The business had revenue of $805.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $804.21 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.69 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 28.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. will post 4.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Neurocrine Biosciences

In other news, CEO Kyle Gano sold 36,400 shares of Neurocrine Biosciences stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.70, for a total transaction of $4,830,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 140,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,632,008.90. This trade represents a 20.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 4.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Neurocrine Biosciences Profile

Neurocrine Biosciences NASDAQ: NBIX is a biopharmaceutical company based in San Diego, California, focused on developing treatments for neurological, endocrine and neuropsychiatric disorders. Since its founding in 1992, the company has pursued a research‐driven strategy aimed at addressing unmet medical needs in movement disorders, reproductive health and central nervous system conditions. Neurocrine's operations encompass drug discovery, clinical development and commercialization activities.

The company's lead marketed product, Ingrezza™ (valbenazine), is indicated for the treatment of tardive dyskinesia, a movement disorder associated with long-term antipsychotic use.

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