Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ:RARE) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical has a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" from 18 research firms, with 14 buy ratings and an average 12-month price target of about $58.41.
• The company’s latest earnings missed expectations, reporting a loss of $1.84 per share versus the expected $1.49 loss, while revenue of $136 million also fell short of estimates and declined 2.2% year over year.
• Recent insider activity has skewed toward selling, including stock sales by the CFO and EVP; meanwhile, institutional investors continue to hold a very large stake, owning 97.67% of the company.

Shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ:RARE - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the eighteen research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $58.4118.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on RARE. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $84.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Wedbush cut their target price on shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $61.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $50.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 6th.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Stock Performance

NASDAQ RARE opened at $33.82 on Monday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $26.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.50. The company has a market capitalization of $3.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.54 and a beta of 0.31. Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical has a 1-year low of $18.29 and a 1-year high of $39.89.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:RARE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.84) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.49) by ($0.35). Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical had a negative return on equity of 1,024.42% and a negative net margin of 91.03%.The company had revenue of $136.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $158.19 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($1.57) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical will post -4.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Howard Horn sold 4,653 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.77, for a total transaction of $110,601.81. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 105,689 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,512,227.53. This represents a 4.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Karah Herdman Parschauer sold 1,899 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 19,319 shares of company stock valued at $476,837 over the last ninety days. 5.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in RARE. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its position in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 26,932 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $817,000 after acquiring an additional 534 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 26.1% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,650 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 549 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 12,591 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $458,000 after buying an additional 564 shares during the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 157,061 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,612,000 after acquiring an additional 577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 43.2% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,489 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 751 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.67% of the company's stock.

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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