Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 15,828 Shares of Axsome Therapeutics, Inc. $AXSM

Key Points

• Vanguard Group reduced its stake in Axsome Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AXSM) by 0.4% in Q4, selling 15,828 shares and now owning 4,164,818 shares (~8.26%) valued at about $760.7 million.
• FDA approval of AUVELITY for agitation associated with dementia due to Alzheimer’s creates a new commercial opportunity and spurred analyst support—Needham raised its target to $255, UBS to $259, and the consensus target is $222.18 with a "Moderate Buy" rating.
• Company insiders have been selling: the COO sold 35,378 shares (avg $161.88) and a director sold 25,000 shares, with insiders disposing of 100,288 shares (~$17.14M) over the past 90 days while insiders still own 22.3% of the stock.

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Axsome Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXSM - Free Report) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,164,818 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,828 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 8.26% of Axsome Therapeutics worth $760,662,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Axsome Therapeutics by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,442 shares of the company's stock valued at $175,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Axsome Therapeutics by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 22,124 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,687,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Axsome Therapeutics by 65.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 268 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Axsome Therapeutics by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,856 shares of the company's stock valued at $225,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its stake in shares of Axsome Therapeutics by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 18,158 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,205,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.49% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on AXSM shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Axsome Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Axsome Therapeutics from $193.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Axsome Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Axsome Therapeutics from $225.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Axsome Therapeutics from $251.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Axsome Therapeutics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $222.18.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Axsome Therapeutics news, COO Mark L. Jacobson sold 35,378 shares of Axsome Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.88, for a total transaction of $5,726,990.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark Coleman sold 25,000 shares of Axsome Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.11, for a total value of $4,027,750.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 47,140 shares in the company, valued at $7,594,725.40. The trade was a 34.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 100,288 shares of company stock valued at $17,138,187 over the last 90 days. 22.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Axsome Therapeutics News

Here are the key news stories impacting Axsome Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: FDA approved AUVELITY (dextromethorphan HBr and bupropion HCl) to treat agitation associated with dementia due to Alzheimer’s — a first-in-class approval that creates a new commercial opportunity and expands Axsome’s Alzheimer’s franchise. US FDA approves Axsome's drug for Alzheimer's-related agitation
• Positive Sentiment: Company press release confirms the FDA approval and outlines AUVELITY’s novel NMDA and sigma-1 receptor mechanism; this is the basis for near-term commercialization planning and upcoming investor outreach. Axsome Therapeutics Announces FDA Approval of AUVELITY
• Positive Sentiment: Needham & Company raised its price target from $225 to $255 and initiated/maintained a Buy rating, implying ~23.5% upside from the referenced price — a supportive analyst view that can attract investor interest. Needham raises price target on Axsome
• Neutral Sentiment: Axsome hosted a virtual investor event and conference call to discuss the FDA approval and provide expert commentary — useful for details on label, launch timing and commercial strategy but not immediately transformative by itself. Axsome Hosts AUVELITY FDA Approval Investor Event
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading in AXSM was temporarily halted ahead of the announcement (news pending) — a procedural sign of material news flow but not an indicator of direction by itself. Trading halt around AXSM news

Axsome Therapeutics Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of AXSM stock opened at $206.53 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.62 billion, a P/E ratio of -55.97 and a beta of 0.59. Axsome Therapeutics, Inc. has a twelve month low of $96.09 and a twelve month high of $217.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $170.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $162.41.

Axsome Therapeutics (NASDAQ:AXSM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported ($0.56) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.70) by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $196.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $191.33 million. Axsome Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 232.61% and a negative net margin of 28.69%.Axsome Therapeutics's revenue was up 65.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Axsome Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Axsome Therapeutics Company Profile

Axsome Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing novel therapies for central nervous system (CNS) disorders. The company focuses on small-molecule drugs designed to address unmet medical needs in areas such as depression, migraine, narcolepsy and fibromyalgia. Axsome employs a precision medicine approach, leveraging pharmacologic innovation to target underlying mechanisms of disease and improve patient outcomes.

Axsome's pipeline includes several late-stage and approved product candidates.

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