Septerna (NASDAQ:SEPN) Stock Price Up 8.9% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Septerna's stock price increased by 8.9% during Wednesday's trading, reaching a last traded price of $13.44 after starting the day at $12.34.
• Analysts' ratings for Septerna vary, with target price upgrades from Cantor Fitzgerald and Wells Fargo—$25.00 and $18.00 respectively—while Wall Street Zen downgraded it to a “sell” rating.
• The company reported a significant earnings miss with ($0.56) EPS against an expectation of ($0.05) EPS and generated revenue of only $0.12 million compared to projected estimates of $22.50 million.

Septerna, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEPN - Get Free Report) traded up 8.9% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $13.34 and last traded at $13.44. 181,204 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 72% from the average session volume of 654,424 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.34.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Septerna from $11.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Septerna in a research note on Friday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Septerna from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Septerna in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $26.75.

Septerna Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $643.36 million and a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.43. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.12.

Septerna (NASDAQ:SEPN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.56) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by ($0.51). The company had revenue of $0.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.50 million. Septerna had a negative net margin of 12,053.03% and a negative return on equity of 31.52%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Septerna, Inc. will post -7.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Septerna

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SEPN. BVF Inc. IL grew its position in shares of Septerna by 79.3% in the 1st quarter. BVF Inc. IL now owns 4,396,124 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,454,000 after buying an additional 1,944,100 shares during the last quarter. TRV GP VI LLC grew its position in shares of Septerna by 33.6% in the 1st quarter. TRV GP VI LLC now owns 4,211,659 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,386,000 after buying an additional 1,059,203 shares during the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Septerna by 20.6% in the 1st quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 3,122,608 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,080,000 after buying an additional 533,055 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC bought a new stake in shares of Septerna in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,111,000. Finally, Checkpoint Capital L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Septerna in the 1st quarter valued at about $4,776,000.

About Septerna

We are a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering a new era of G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) oral small molecule drug discovery powered by our proprietary Native Complex Platform™. Our industrial-scale platform aims to unlock the full potential of GPCR therapies and has led to the discovery and development of our deep pipeline of product candidates focused initially on treating patients in three therapeutic areas: endocrinology, immunology and inflammation, and metabolic diseases.