Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $TARS Holdings Lowered by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management reduced its Tarsus Pharmaceuticals stake by 35% in the third quarter, selling 331,521 shares and retaining 615,974 shares worth approximately $48.4 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 90.01% of TARS.
• Tarsus insiders sold 48,031 shares worth about $4.0 million over the past 90 days, including sales by an insider and the CEO under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $100.86, compared with the stock’s reported price of $68.07. The company’s primary product is XDEMVY, an FDA-approved treatment for Demodex blepharitis.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lessened its holdings in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:TARS - Free Report) by 35.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 615,974 shares of the company's stock after selling 331,521 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 1.40% of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals worth $48,422,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in TARS. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $242,705,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $176,834,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 16.1% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,240,963 shares of the company's stock valued at $157,223,000 after acquiring an additional 310,638 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 57.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,194,377 shares of the company's stock worth $83,786,000 after buying an additional 436,271 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TimesSquare Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at approximately $23,249,000. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Tarsus Pharmaceuticals

In other Tarsus Pharmaceuticals news, insider Elizabeth Lin sold 10,773 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.50, for a total transaction of $942,637.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 2,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $222,862.50. This trade represents a 80.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Bobak R. Azamian sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.56, for a total transaction of $905,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 827,991 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,982,864.96. This represents a 1.19% 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. Insiders have sold a total of 48,031 shares of company stock valued at $4,004,227 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 9.64% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on TARS shares. Guggenheim cut their price target on shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from $90.00 to $89.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday. Zacks Research upgraded Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from $88.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Tarsus Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $100.86.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ:TARS opened at $68.07 on Friday. Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $53.89 and a 52-week high of $91.53. The firm has a market cap of $3.36 billion, a P/E ratio of -62.45 and a beta of 0.44. The business's 50-day moving average price is $75.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.42. The company has a quick ratio of 3.17, a current ratio of 3.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:TARS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.43) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.19) by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $173.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $169.65 million. Tarsus Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 13.53% and a negative net margin of 7.67%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Tarsus Pharmaceuticals

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for diseases and conditions affecting the eye. The company concentrates on areas of significant unmet need in ophthalmology and aims to address conditions that can affect ocular health, comfort and vision.

Tarsus' primary product is XDEMVY (lotilaner ophthalmic solution) 0.25%, an eye drop approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2023 for the treatment of Demodex blepharitis.

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