Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) Insider Sells 10,869 Shares of Company Stock

Key Points

• Insider sale: Jeffrey Heier sold 10,869 Ocular Therapeutix shares for approximately $76,626 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards. He retained 307,457 shares.
• Stock and financial performance: OCUL recently traded at $7.34, near the lower end of its 52-week range. The company reported a quarterly loss of $0.35 per share, though it exceeded analysts’ loss and revenue estimates.
• Analyst sentiment: Ocular Therapeutix has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, with nine Buy, one Hold, and one Sell rating. The average analyst price target is $24.33, substantially above the recent share price.

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCUL - Get Free Report) insider Jeffrey Heier sold 10,869 shares of Ocular Therapeutix stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.05, for a total value of $76,626.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 307,457 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,167,571.85. This represents a 3.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Ocular Therapeutix Trading Up 1.2%

OCUL stock traded up $0.09 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $7.34. 2,795,753 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,000,442. The company has a 50-day moving average of $9.78 and a 200-day moving average of $9.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 13.03 and a current ratio of 13.10. Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. has a 1 year low of $6.23 and a 1 year high of $16.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.61 billion, a PE ratio of -5.17 and a beta of 1.00.

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.35) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.40) by $0.05. Ocular Therapeutix had a negative return on equity of 59.89% and a negative net margin of 579.10%.The business had revenue of $13.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.39) EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. will post -1.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ocular Therapeutix

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Ocular Therapeutix in the second quarter worth about $190,278,000. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Ocular Therapeutix by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,777,777 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $130,842,000 after buying an additional 527,777 shares during the period. Summer Road LLC boosted its position in Ocular Therapeutix by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Summer Road LLC now owns 11,879,825 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $100,622,000 after acquiring an additional 771,270 shares in the last quarter. Octagon Capital Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 20.7% during the 1st quarter. Octagon Capital Advisors LP now owns 3,166,600 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $26,821,000 after acquiring an additional 543,000 shares during the period. Finally, Commodore Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix during the 1st quarter worth approximately $21,810,000. Institutional investors own 59.21% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on OCUL. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix from $24.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $18.00 price target on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ocular Therapeutix from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.33.

Ocular Therapeutix Company Profile

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for diseases and conditions affecting the eye. The company uses its proprietary hydrogel-based formulation and delivery technologies to create sustained-release treatments intended to improve drug delivery, reduce dosing frequency and address unmet needs in ophthalmology.

Its commercial product is DEXTENZA, a corticosteroid ophthalmic insert that is placed in the canaliculus by a healthcare professional.

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