Traders Purchase High Volume of Galapagos Call Options (NASDAQ:GLPG)

Galapagos NV (NASDAQ:GLPG) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock investors purchased 5,008 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 626% compared to the typical daily volume of 690 call options.

Galapagos Stock Up 0.0 %

NASDAQ:GLPG opened at $26.87 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $25.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.15. Galapagos has a 52-week low of $22.36 and a 52-week high of $31.23.

Galapagos (NASDAQ:GLPG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The biotechnology company reported ($2.47) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by ($2.24). The business had revenue of $97.33 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $72.22 million. Analysts forecast that Galapagos will post -1.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GLPG has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com lowered Galapagos from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Galapagos in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. TD Cowen downgraded Galapagos from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded Galapagos from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $31.00 to $22.00 in a report on Friday, February 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $25.33.

Institutional Trading of Galapagos

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wealthquest Corp bought a new stake in shares of Galapagos during the 1st quarter valued at $74,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Galapagos by 354.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 10,148 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 7,915 shares in the last quarter. Wealthedge Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Galapagos in the 4th quarter valued at $311,000. Woodline Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Galapagos in the 4th quarter valued at $1,262,000. Finally, Tang Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Galapagos by 208.7% in the 4th quarter. Tang Capital Management LLC now owns 2,161,200 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $59,433,000 after buying an additional 1,461,200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 32.46% of the company’s stock.

About Galapagos

Galapagos NV, a biotechnology company, develops medicines focusing on oncology and immunology primarily in the United States and Europe. The company's pipeline products comprise GLPG3667 that has completed phase 1b trial; GLPG5101, a CD19 CAR-T product candidate manufactured at point-of-care, currently in Phase1/2 trial in relapsed/refractory non-hodgkin lymphoma; GLPG5201, a CD19 CAR-T product candidates manufactured at point-of-care, currently in phase 1/2 trial in replapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia; and GLPG5301, a BCMA CAR-T product candidate manufactured at point-of-care, currently in phase 1/2 in relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma.