Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CRNX) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume on Analyst Upgrade

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRNX) saw unusually-high trading volume on Wednesday after Robert W. Baird raised their price target on the stock from $62.00 to $85.00. Robert W. Baird currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Approximately 3,272,635 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 71% from the previous session’s volume of 1,911,163 shares.The stock last traded at $83.5050 and had previously closed at $83.53.

CRNX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Citizens Jmp reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. HC Wainwright downgraded shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $81.00 to $85.00 in a report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 17th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Crinetics Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.27.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Stephanie Okey sold 6,900 shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.67, for a total transaction of $246,123.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $228,288. The trade was a 51.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Coelho Rogerio Vivaldi sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 19,225 shares in the company, valued at $769,000. The trade was a 13.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Crinetics Pharmaceuticals

Here are the key news stories impacting Crinetics Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vertex announced a definitive agreement to buy Crinetics Pharmaceuticals for $85 per share in cash, giving shareholders a large acquisition premium and lifting the stock toward the offer price. Vertex’s Crinetics Deal Balances Growth with Integration Risk
• Positive Sentiment: The deal underscores the value of PALSONIFY and Atumelnant, suggesting Crinetics’ assets are de-risked enough to attract a major pharma buyer. Vertex Is Buying Crinetics for $10 Billion. Here’s What Investors Need to Know.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analysts moved ratings to “hold” or lowered their stance after the takeover announcement, reflecting limited upside beyond the acquisition price rather than a change in fundamentals.
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider selling and a report questioning valuation may add some noise, but these appear secondary to the takeover-driven move. Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CRNX) Director Sells $120,000.00 in Stock

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Crinetics Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CRNX. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 44.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,381,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $349,110,000 after acquiring an additional 2,574,683 shares during the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 20.2% in the 4th quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 6,933,098 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,736,000 after buying an additional 1,163,000 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,520,251 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,227,000 after buying an additional 79,560 shares during the period. Paradigm Biocapital Advisors LP grew its stake in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter. Paradigm Biocapital Advisors LP now owns 2,550,774 shares of the company’s stock worth $106,240,000 after acquiring an additional 207,221 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Siren L.L.C. increased its position in shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 26.3% during the first quarter. Siren L.L.C. now owns 1,903,636 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,140,000 after acquiring an additional 396,000 shares during the period. 98.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $37.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.80 billion, a PE ratio of -16.28 and a beta of 0.23.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CRNX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($1.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.22) by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $10.73 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.51 million. Crinetics Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 2,747.18% and a negative return on equity of 43.96%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2873.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($1.04) EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -4.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapeutics for rare endocrine diseases. The company’s proprietary platform leverages insights into hormone receptor signaling to design small-molecule candidates that address conditions driven by dysregulated hormone activity. Crinetics’ research efforts center on targeting somatostatin, vasopressin and other GPCR-mediated pathways with orally bioavailable molecules intended to improve patient convenience and adherence.

The company’s lead product candidate, paltusotine (formerly CRN04777), is a selective, non-peptide somatostatin receptor type 2 agonist being evaluated for the treatment of acromegaly and carcinoid syndrome diarrhea.