Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:RARE) Trading 8.4% Higher - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical shares jumped 8.4% on Wednesday, trading as high as $27.20 after closing at $24.85 the previous day. Trading volume was far below normal, with 224,685 shares changing hands versus an average of about 2.08 million.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on the stock, with several raising price targets, including Morgan Stanley to $67 and Cantor Fitzgerald to $96. The consensus rating is Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $59.56.
• Recent fundamentals were weak: the company reported a larger-than-expected quarterly loss of $1.84 per share and revenue of $136 million, both below analyst estimates. Despite that, institutional investors continue to hold a large majority of the stock, and insiders have also been selling shares recently.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ:RARE - Get Free Report) shares traded up 8.4% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $27.20 and last traded at $26.93. 224,685 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 2,079,976 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.85.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective 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. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted 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. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Wedbush lowered their price target on shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $59.56.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Trading Up 10.9%

The stock's fifty day moving average is $24.09 and its 200 day moving average is $24.96. The company has a market capitalization of $2.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.50 and a beta of 0.37.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Howard Horn sold 4,653 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $2,512,227.53. This represents a 4.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Karah Herdman Parschauer sold 1,899 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.62, for a total transaction of $46,753.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 94,462 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,325,654.44. This trade represents a 1.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 24,002 shares of company stock valued at $575,039. 5.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RARE. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 1,030.4% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,257,671 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $47,298,000 after purchasing an additional 2,057,951 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 614.1% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 2,167,729 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $65,205,000 after purchasing an additional 1,864,164 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical in the 4th quarter worth about $29,004,000. Eagle Health Investments LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical in the 1st quarter worth about $18,522,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 787.6% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 880,644 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $20,255,000 after purchasing an additional 781,431 shares during the period. 97.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

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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