Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Esperion Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ESPR)

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESPR - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock investors purchased 2,720 call options on the company. This is an increase of 124% compared to the typical volume of 1,216 call options.

Esperion Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of ESPR traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $1.20. 1,673,640 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,306,164. The stock's 50-day moving average is $0.95 and its 200-day moving average is $1.67. Esperion Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $0.69 and a fifty-two week high of $3.94. The company has a market cap of $237.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.88 and a beta of 0.67.

Esperion Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ESPR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.21) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.18) by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $65.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $54.97 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Esperion Therapeutics will post -0.29 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on ESPR shares. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $16.00 target price on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on shares of Esperion Therapeutics from $5.00 to $4.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Esperion Therapeutics from $4.00 to $3.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $6.25.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ESPR. Summit Financial LLC increased its holdings in Esperion Therapeutics by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 46,528 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 7,150 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 33.2% during the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 40,106 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 15.5% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 97,833 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $215,000 after buying an additional 13,101 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in Esperion Therapeutics by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 3,616,200 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $7,956,000 after acquiring an additional 16,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Esperion Therapeutics by 15.3% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 123,896 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $273,000 after acquiring an additional 16,404 shares during the last quarter. 47.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Esperion Therapeutics Company Profile

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc, a pharmaceutical company, develops and commercializes medicines for the treatment of patients with elevated low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). Its marketed products include NEXLETOL (bempedoic acid) and NEXLIZET (bempedoic acid and ezetimibe) tablets that are oral, once-daily, non-statin medicines for the treatment of primary hyperlipidemia in adults with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia or atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease who require additional lowering of LDL-C.