Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:RARE)

Key Points

• Options activity surged: Investors purchased 22,568 call options, more than seven times the company’s average call volume of 2,792 contracts.
• Shares plunged 45.1% to $14.57 after Ultragenyx’s Aspire study failed its primary and secondary endpoints, weakening prospects for its Angelman syndrome treatment and prompting potential cost reductions.
• Despite the setback, analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with a $39.37 target price, while institutional investors own 97.67% of the stock. The company’s latest quarterly revenue rose 28.5% year over year to $214 million and exceeded estimates.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ:RARE - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock investors purchased 22,568 call options on the company. This is an increase of 708% compared to the average volume of 2,792 call options.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Corazon (Corsee) D. Sanders sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.05, for a total value of $50,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 21,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $528,429.75. The trade was a 8.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karah Herdman Parschauer sold 1,899 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.62, for a total value of $46,753.38. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 94,462 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,325,654.44. The trade was a 1.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 5.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $355,746,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical in the second quarter valued at about $6,397,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical during the second quarter worth approximately $5,503,000. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new position in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical during the 2nd quarter worth $4,644,000. Finally, Blue Owl Capital Holdings LP bought a new stake in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical during the 2nd quarter valued at $6,098,000. Institutional investors own 97.67% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $50.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. HC Wainwright cut their target price on shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $50.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $58.00 to $28.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $39.37.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Trading Down 45.1%

Shares of RARE stock traded down $11.96 on Thursday, hitting $14.57. 17,370,193 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,331,746. Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical has a fifty-two week low of $13.81 and a fifty-two week high of $39.89. The business has a 50-day moving average of $28.36 and a 200 day moving average of $25.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.50 and a beta of 0.31.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:RARE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.90) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.22) by $0.32. Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical had a negative net margin of 81.79% and a negative return on equity of 1,024.42%. The company had revenue of $214.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $183.08 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($1.17) earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 28.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical will post -3.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Key Headlines Impacting Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

Here are the key news stories impacting Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts still see substantial long-term upside. TD Cowen, Canaccord Genuity and HC Wainwright maintained buy ratings with price targets of $18, $37 and $25, respectively, while Cantor Fitzgerald kept an overweight rating with a $33 target. These views reflect confidence in Ultragenyx’s commercial portfolio and other pipeline programs. Barron's article
• Positive Sentiment: Ultragenyx recently reported encouraging 96-week data for GENGLYCOS, also known as DTX401, in glycogen storage disease type Ia. Patients achieved an average 61% reduction in daily cornstarch intake while maintaining glycemic control, supporting the potential of the company’s gene-therapy business. GENGLYCOS trial publication
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinion remains divided following the trial setback. JPMorgan, Baird, Wells Fargo, Evercore, Wedbush, Bank of America and William Blair moved to neutral, equal-weight or market-perform views. Although revised targets range from $16 to $36, most firms significantly reduced their estimates.
• Negative Sentiment: The Aspire study failed to achieve the change-from-baseline Bayley-4 cognitive score primary endpoint and the Multidomain Responder Index secondary endpoint, undermining expectations for approval and commercialization of the Angelman syndrome drug. Reuters trial failure report
• Negative Sentiment: Ultragenyx is considering cost reductions after the failure, while investors reassess the company’s growth outlook. Trading volume was exceptionally heavy and the stock approached its 52-week low, reflecting elevated concern about pipeline concentration and valuation.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Company Profile

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for rare and ultra-rare genetic disorders. Since its founding in 2010 and headquarters in Novato, California, the company has built expertise in protein replacement therapies, small molecules and gene therapy approaches to address high-unmet medical needs. Ultragenyx applies a precision medicine model, leveraging both in-house research and strategic collaborations to advance its product pipeline from discovery through regulatory approval.

The company's commercial portfolio includes Crysvita (burosumab-tmyl) for X-linked hypophosphatemia, Mepsevii (vestronidase alfa-vjbk) for mucopolysaccharidosis VII and Dojolvi (triheptanoin) for long-chain fatty acid oxidation disorders.

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