Handelsbanken Fonder AB Lowers Stock Position in Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $CPRX

Handelsbanken Fonder AB cut its stake in shares of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRX) by 9.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,077 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 3,400 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Catalyst Pharmaceuticals were worth $696,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CPRX. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Catalyst Pharmaceuticals by 24.7% in the 2nd quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 67,778 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,471,000 after purchasing an additional 13,407 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in shares of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter valued at approximately $14,941,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals by 33.5% in the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 440,523 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $10,683,000 after buying an additional 110,543 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals by 194.7% in the second quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 56,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,215,000 after buying an additional 37,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clark Capital Management Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals by 17.9% during the first quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 244,995 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $5,941,000 after acquiring an additional 37,262 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.22% of the company’s stock.

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ CPRX opened at $23.36 on Friday. Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $19.05 and a 12-month high of $26.58. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $21.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.79.

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CPRX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, September 25th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter. Catalyst Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 40.78% and a net margin of 37.36%.The company had revenue of $53.11 million for the quarter. On average, equities analysts predict that Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post 1.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, October 1st that permits the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the biopharmaceutical company to purchase up to 8.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $33.00 price target on shares of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Catalyst Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 16th. Citigroup raised their price target on Catalyst Pharmaceuticals from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Catalyst Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Catalyst Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $32.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Catalyst Pharmaceuticals

In other Catalyst Pharmaceuticals news, insider Brian Elsbernd sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.30, for a total transaction of $609,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 271,039 shares in the company, valued at $5,502,091.70. The trade was a 9.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Carmen Jeffrey Del sold 10,983 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.33, for a total transaction of $256,233.39. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 3,962 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $92,433.46. This trade represents a 73.49% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 90,983 shares of company stock worth $1,852,433 in the last 90 days. 10.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals Profile

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing therapies for people with rare debilitating, chronic neuromuscular, and neurological diseases in the United States. It offers Firdapse, an amifampridine phosphate tablets for the treatment of patients with lambert-eaton myasthenic syndrome (LEMS); and Ruzurgi for the treatment of pediatric LEMS patients.