Septerna (NASDAQ:SEPN) Sets New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Septerna reached a new 52-week high of $52.02 after Stifel Nicolaus raised its price target from $49 to $60 and maintained a Buy rating.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: the stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $56.44, though one analyst rates it Sell.
• Septerna’s latest quarter missed expectations, reporting a loss of $0.57 per share versus a $0.42 expected loss, and revenue of $18.88 million versus $20.78 million forecast.

Shares of Septerna, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEPN - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $49.00 to $60.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Septerna traded as high as $52.02 and last traded at $50.5890, with a volume of 125,001 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $50.74.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Septerna in a report on Thursday, October 15th. JonesTrading lifted their price target on Septerna from $43.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. HC Wainwright raised their target price on shares of Septerna from $40.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Septerna from $50.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price target on Septerna from $51.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $56.44.

Insider Activity at Septerna

In other Septerna news, COO Elizabeth Bhatt sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.41, for a total value of $149,640.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 174,209 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,517,158.69. This represents a 2.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Daniel D. Long sold 3,333 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.83, for a total transaction of $126,087.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 96,412 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,647,265.96. This represents a 3.34% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 5.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Septerna

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Septerna in the first quarter valued at about $906,000. TRV GP V LLC bought a new position in Septerna in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $208,160,143. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in Septerna during the 2nd quarter worth $445,000. First Light Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Septerna by 31.4% in the 2nd quarter. First Light Asset Management LLC now owns 963,260 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,260,000 after buying an additional 230,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TRV GP VI LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Septerna in the 2nd quarter valued at $141,048,460.

Septerna Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $39.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $32.71. The firm has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -94.95 and a beta of 2.20.

Septerna (NASDAQ:SEPN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 9th. The company reported ($0.57) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.42) by ($0.15). Septerna had a negative return on equity of 9.57% and a negative net margin of 24.51%. The business had revenue of $18.88 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.78 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Septerna, Inc. will post -1.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Septerna

Septerna is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing medicines that target G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), a large family of proteins involved in many biological processes. The company is based in South San Francisco, California.

Its discovery platform is designed to identify drug candidates that act on GPCRs, including targets that have been difficult to address with conventional drug-development approaches. Septerna is advancing candidates for endocrine, metabolic and other disease areas, with an emphasis on small-molecule medicines.

Founded in 2021, Septerna has no marketed products; its work is focused on research and clinical development.

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