LPL Financial LLC Purchases 3,643 Shares of Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX)

LPL Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) by 27.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,754 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,643 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences were worth $2,287,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in Neurocrine Biosciences by 25.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 2,239 shares of the company’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 83.3% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,000 after buying an additional 614 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 2.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,859,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $213,773,000 after acquiring an additional 39,610 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its stake in Neurocrine Biosciences by 32.8% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 12,684 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,461,000 after acquiring an additional 3,131 shares during the period. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Neurocrine Biosciences in the third quarter valued at $1,985,000. 92.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NBIX has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $172.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Neurocrine Biosciences from $154.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Barclays increased their target price on Neurocrine Biosciences from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Neurocrine Biosciences from $183.00 to $184.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $163.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Julie Cooke sold 1,551 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.78, for a total transaction of $181,125.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,282,348.32. The trade was a 7.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Kevin Charles Gorman sold 146,105 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.46, for a total transaction of $21,836,853.30. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 514,596 shares in the company, valued at $76,911,518.16. This represents a 22.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 232,906 shares of company stock worth $33,869,030. 4.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Neurocrine Biosciences Stock Up 4.4 %

Shares of NBIX opened at $94.89 on Tuesday. Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. has a twelve month low of $84.23 and a twelve month high of $157.98. The company has a market capitalization of $9.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.33. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $110.55 and a 200 day moving average of $122.92.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by ($0.62). Neurocrine Biosciences had a return on equity of 13.38% and a net margin of 14.49%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. will post 4.28 EPS for the current year.

Neurocrine Biosciences declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, February 21st that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.