Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:RARE) Upgraded to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Ultragenyx from a "sell" to a "hold"; the stock's overall analyst consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $60.76.
• In the latest quarter Ultragenyx reported EPS of ($1.29), missing estimates by $0.09, while revenue rose 25.5% year‑over‑year to $207.3 million and the company remains unprofitable with wide negative margins.
• Insiders including the CEO and EVP sold shares in March (about 109,556 shares sold in the last 90 days), even as institutional investors hold roughly 97.7% of the stock.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:RARE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Sunday.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial raised Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Guggenheim lowered their price target on Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $64.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $120.00 to $74.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $61.00 to $25.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Wedbush reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $60.76.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Stock Performance

NASDAQ RARE opened at $24.77 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $22.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.99. Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical has a one year low of $18.29 and a one year high of $42.37. The company has a market capitalization of $2.44 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.24 and a beta of 0.38.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:RARE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.20) by ($0.09). Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical had a negative net margin of 85.54% and a negative return on equity of 1,024.42%. The company had revenue of $207.28 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $199.60 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($1.39) EPS. Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical's revenue for the quarter was up 25.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical will post -4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical news, EVP Eric Crombez sold 7,029 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.80, for a total value of $160,261.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 76,301 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,739,662.80. This trade represents a 8.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Emil D. Kakkis sold 54,404 shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.80, for a total value of $1,240,411.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 658,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,025,063.20. This trade represents a 7.63% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 109,556 shares of company stock valued at $2,490,138. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Aquatic Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 79.1% during the 3rd quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 191,458 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $5,759,000 after acquiring an additional 84,559 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $3,773,000. Aberdeen Group plc lifted its stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 94.3% during the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 973,656 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $29,288,000 after acquiring an additional 472,600 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 36.9% during the 3rd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 288,109 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $8,747,000 after acquiring an additional 77,640 shares during the period. Finally, Thornburg Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,083,000. 97.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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