Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) Shares Gap Down to $152.55

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) shares gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $152.55, but opened at $125.90. Neurocrine Biosciences shares last traded at $121.20, with a volume of 1,126,479 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on NBIX. Guggenheim raised their target price on Neurocrine Biosciences from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Neurocrine Biosciences from $216.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $152.00 price target on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. StockNews.com raised shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Neurocrine Biosciences from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Neurocrine Biosciences has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.32.

Neurocrine Biosciences Trading Down 19.5 %

The stock has a market cap of $12.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.86 and a beta of 0.37. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $144.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $139.55.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.15 by ($0.52). Neurocrine Biosciences had a return on equity of 14.86% and a net margin of 16.00%. The business had revenue of $590.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $545.98 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.95 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 30.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Julie Cooke sold 12,632 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $1,935,980.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 18,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,789,638.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Neurocrine Biosciences news, insider Julie Cooke sold 12,632 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.26, for a total value of $1,935,980.32. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 18,202 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,789,638.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director William H. Rastetter sold 14,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.69, for a total value of $2,090,332.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 37,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,499,554.79. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 71,798 shares of company stock worth $10,676,096. Insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Neurocrine Biosciences

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. RFP Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Neurocrine Biosciences by 346.5% in the 1st quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 192 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in the second quarter worth $30,000. Finally, EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Neurocrine Biosciences during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 92.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Neurocrine Biosciences

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc discovers, develops, and markets pharmaceuticals for neurological, neuroendocrine, and neuropsychiatric disorders in the United States and internationally. The company's products include INGREZZA for tardive dyskinesia and chorea associated with Huntington's disease; ALKINDI for adrenal insufficiency; Efmody capsules for classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia; Orilissa tablets for endometriosis; and Oriahnn capsules to treat uterine fibroids.