Neurocrine Biosciences’ (NBIX) “Buy” Rating Reaffirmed at Needham & Company LLC

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $204.00 price objective on the stock. Needham & Company LLC’s target price suggests a potential upside of 48.04% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 9th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $207.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $231.00 to $214.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Guggenheim assumed coverage on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $207.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $201.14.

Neurocrine Biosciences Price Performance

NBIX stock traded up $0.85 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $137.80. 140,633 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,217,678. Neurocrine Biosciences has a one year low of $122.14 and a one year high of $186.12. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $149.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $153.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.40.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $1.20. Neurocrine Biosciences had a net margin of 20.91% and a return on equity of 22.43%. The company had revenue of $959.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $891.16 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.65 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Neurocrine Biosciences will post 7.70 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Leslie Norwalk sold 1,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.01, for a total transaction of $227,512.50. Following the sale, the director owned 1,588 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $289,031.88. The trade was a 44.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Matt Abernethy sold 2,311 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.20, for a total value of $363,289.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 42,808 shares in the company, valued at $6,729,417.60. This trade represents a 5.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last three months, insiders have sold 4,387 shares of company stock worth $720,855. 4.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NBIX. Basecamp Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Neurocrine Biosciences by 582.9% during the first quarter. Basecamp Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 239 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. TrinityBridge Ltd acquired a new stake in Neurocrine Biosciences in the second quarter worth $45,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, Ascentis Independent Advisors bought a new stake in Neurocrine Biosciences during the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. 92.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Neurocrine Biosciences

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing medicines for neurological, neuroendocrine and related disorders. The company is headquartered in San Diego, California, and conducts research through internal programs and collaborations with academic institutions and other pharmaceutical companies.

Neurocrine’s principal commercial product is INGREZZA (valbenazine), a vesicular monoamine transporter 2 inhibitor used to treat tardive dyskinesia and chorea associated with Huntington’s disease.