LB Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LBRX) Share Price Breaks Above Fifty Day Moving Average Following Weak Earnings

LB Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:LBRX)’s stock price passed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $40.57 and traded as high as $42.29. LB Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $42.01, with a volume of 480,240 shares traded.

The company reported ($1.79) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.61) by ($0.18).

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $53.00 price target on LB Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Weiss Ratings cut LB Pharmaceuticals from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating on shares of LB Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, October 12th. Zacks Research cut LB Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on shares of LB Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, October 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.40.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LB Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LBRX. Spruce Street Capital LP raised its holdings in shares of LB Pharmaceuticals by 36.9% in the 1st quarter. Spruce Street Capital LP now owns 1,376,159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,645,000 after buying an additional 370,566 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. acquired a new position in LB Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at $10,949,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of LB Pharmaceuticals by 90.8% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 65,028 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,496,000 after purchasing an additional 30,954 shares during the period. Eversept Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of LB Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,471,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in LB Pharmaceuticals by 11.9% in the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 58,891 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,911,000 after buying an additional 6,251 shares in the last quarter.

LB Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a PE ratio of -9.09 and a beta of 0.82. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $40.57 and its 200 day moving average is $32.95.

About LB Pharmaceuticals

LB Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing treatments for neuropsychiatric disorders. The company’s lead product candidate, LB-102, is an investigational oral therapy being developed for schizophrenia and potentially other conditions involving serious disturbances in mood, thought and behavior.

LB-102 is designed as a prodrug of amisulpride, an antipsychotic compound that has been approved in certain markets outside the United States but is not approved by the U.S.