The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Grows Stock Position in Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:JAZZ)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:JAZZ - Free Report) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 353,467 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company's stock after buying an additional 5,715 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.58% of Jazz Pharmaceuticals worth $43,529,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 39,210 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,369,000 after purchasing an additional 6,289 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 2.4% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 19,106 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,129,000 after buying an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,118,688 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company's stock worth $124,208,000 after buying an additional 48,708 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 56.7% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 967 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $119,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 49.8% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 620 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.14% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Patricia Carr sold 1,140 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.81, for a total transaction of $157,103.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,012 shares in the company, valued at $966,323.72. This represents a 13.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Bruce C. Cozadd sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.75, for a total value of $185,625.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 440,307 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $54,487,991.25. This trade represents a 0.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 27,236 shares of company stock valued at $3,839,840. 4.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $183.00 price target (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Jazz Pharmaceuticals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $200.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $200.00 price objective (up previously from $190.00) on shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Jazz Pharmaceuticals from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $187.71.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ JAZZ traded down $1.85 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $118.20. The company had a trading volume of 936,526 shares, compared to its average volume of 805,828. The company has a current ratio of 4.26, a quick ratio of 3.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $122.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $122.52. The stock has a market cap of $7.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.42. Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc has a 1 year low of $95.49 and a 1 year high of $148.06.

About Jazz Pharmaceuticals

Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc identifies, develops, and commercializes pharmaceutical products for unmet medical needs in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company offers Xywav for cataplexy or excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) with narcolepsy and idiopathic hypersomnia; Xyrem to treat cataplexy or EDS with narcolepsy; Epidiolex for seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut and Dravet syndromes, or tuberous sclerosis complex; Zepzelca to treat metastatic small cell lung cancer, or with disease progression on or after platinum-based chemotherapy; Rylaze for acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoblastic lymphoma; Enrylaze to treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia and lymphoblastic lymphoma; Defitelio to treat severe hepatic veno-occlusive disease; and Vyxeos for newly-diagnosed therapy-related acute myeloid leukemia.