EyePoint Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:EYPT) Shares Gap Up Following Insider Buying Activity

Shares of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYPT) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock had previously closed at $16.95, but opened at $18.26. EyePoint Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $17.98, with a volume of 100,302 shares trading hands.

Specifically, major shareholder Cormorant Asset Management, Lp acquired 581,765 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $18.03 per share, with a total value of $10,489,222.95. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 7,475,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $134,774,250. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other EyePoint Pharmaceuticals news, major shareholder Cormorant Asset Management, Lp purchased 581,765 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $18.03 per share, with a total value of $10,489,222.95. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 7,475,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $134,774,250. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Dario A. Paggiarino sold 49,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.66, for a total transaction of $1,265,679.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $936,718.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 50,134 shares of company stock valued at $1,286,634. Insiders own 13.05% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on EYPT shares. Capital One Financial reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $35.00 price target for the company. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals from $30.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Finally, HC Wainwright lowered their price target on shares of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, EyePoint Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.00.

EyePoint Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 3.7 %

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.60. The stock has a market cap of $875.51 million, a PE ratio of -9.60 and a beta of 1.64.

EyePoint Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:EYPT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported ($0.33) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.60) by $0.27. EyePoint Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 153.84% and a negative return on equity of 61.48%. The firm had revenue of $14.03 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.71 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($0.61) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EyePoint Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,640,651 shares of the company’s stock valued at $107,245,000 after buying an additional 488,206 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at about $24,641,000. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals by 194.0% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 674,824 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,595,000 after buying an additional 445,289 shares during the period. UBS Group AG increased its position in shares of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 574,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,269,000 after buying an additional 47,321 shares during the period. Finally, First Turn Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of EyePoint Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at about $7,326,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.41% of the company’s stock.

About EyePoint Pharmaceuticals

EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in developing and commercializing therapeutics to improve the lives of patients with serious retinal diseases. The company's pipeline leverages its proprietary bioerodible Durasert E technology for sustained intraocular drug delivery.