Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC (NASDAQ:JAZZ) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Jazz Pharmaceuticals received a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating from 20 analysts: 16 issued buy ratings, three recommended holding the stock and one gave it a strong-buy rating. The average 12-month price target is approximately $259.06.
• Recent analyst actions were broadly positive, with Wells Fargo raising its target to $285, Barclays to $260 and Leerink Partners to $225, while Morgan Stanley and Raymond James maintained overweight or outperform ratings.
• Jazz shares opened at $252.86, near their 12-month high of $261.30, after reporting quarterly revenue of $1.07 billion and earnings of $6.34 per share. Insiders sold $3.13 million of stock in the past 90 days, while institutional investors own 89.14% of the company.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC (NASDAQ:JAZZ - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, sixteen have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $259.0556.

JAZZ has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Leerink Partners boosted their target price on shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $265.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $245.00 price objective on shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $239.00 target price on shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $253.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th.

Insider Activity at Jazz Pharmaceuticals

In other Jazz Pharmaceuticals news, Director Bruce C. Cozadd sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.47, for a total value of $1,442,820.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 366,682 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $88,176,020.54. This trade represents a 1.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Heather Ann Mcsharry sold 2,000 shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.00, for a total transaction of $482,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 18,449 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,446,209. The trade was a 9.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 13,098 shares of company stock worth $3,131,906 in the last 90 days. 4.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Jazz Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arista Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Jazz Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth about $241,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in Jazz Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $61,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 18.8% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,407 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $339,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 349.2% in the second quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 292 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 14.9% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,357 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company's stock worth $568,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.14% of the company's stock.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:JAZZ opened at $252.86 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. Jazz Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $105.00 and a 12 month high of $261.30. The company has a market capitalization of $15.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12,636.68, a PEG ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.32. The firm's 50-day moving average is $239.26 and its 200 day moving average is $206.37.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:JAZZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The specialty pharmaceutical company reported $6.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Jazz Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 0.66% and a return on equity of 14.56%. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter. Research analysts predict that Jazz Pharmaceuticals will post 21.9 EPS for the current year.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies in neuroscience and oncology. The company's research and development efforts target unmet medical needs in sleep disorders, hematologic malignancies, rare neurological conditions and solid tumors. Jazz's product portfolio includes therapies for narcolepsy, hepatic veno-occlusive disease, acute myeloid leukemia and other serious disorders.

Flagship products from Jazz Pharmaceuticals include Xyrem® (sodium oxybate) and Xywav® (calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium oxybates) for the treatment of cataplexy and excessive daytime sleepiness in patients with narcolepsy.

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