Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals Call Options (NASDAQ:LXRX)

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:LXRX) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Traders acquired 2,504 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 61% compared to the typical volume of 1,558 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lexicon Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LXRX. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 71.2% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 31,853 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 13,246 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 747,996 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $552,000 after purchasing an additional 15,249 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 34.4% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 62,976 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 16,136 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its position in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 60.3% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 65,415 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 24,615 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 27.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 136,407 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $101,000 after buying an additional 29,319 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on LXRX shares. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $4.00 price objective on shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com began coverage on Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday. They issued a “sell” rating for the company. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Lexicon Pharmaceuticals from $10.00 to $6.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Leerink Partners reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $1.00 price objective (down previously from $2.00) on shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs lowered Lexicon Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $3.67.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $0.25 during trading on Friday, hitting $0.60. The stock had a trading volume of 229,836,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,924,403. The firm has a market cap of $147.25 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.79 and a beta of 1.04. Lexicon Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $0.28 and a 12 month high of $2.47. The business’s 50-day moving average is $0.61 and its 200 day moving average is $1.01. The company has a current ratio of 7.45, a quick ratio of 7.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LXRX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by $0.02. Lexicon Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 107.38% and a negative net margin of 4,109.41%. The firm had revenue of $26.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.48 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lexicon Pharmaceuticals will post -0.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialization of pharmaceutical products. Its orally-delivered small molecule drug candidates under development comprise Sotagliflozin that completed Phase III clinical trials for the for the treatment of heart failure and type 1 diabetes; and LX9211, which is in Phase II clinical development for the treatment of neuropathic pain and LX2761, which is in Phase I clinical development for gastrointestinal tract.