Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) Raised to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Sunday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Neurocrine Biosciences from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. HC Wainwright lifted their price target on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $168.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $172.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $146.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $170.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.00.

Neurocrine Biosciences Price Performance

Shares of NBIX opened at $141.20 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $142.20 and a 200-day moving average of $140.46. The company has a market cap of $14.08 billion, a PE ratio of 33.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.31. Neurocrine Biosciences has a one year low of $84.23 and a one year high of $160.18.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director George J. Morrow sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.37, for a total value of $2,150,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 7,068 shares in the company, valued at $1,013,339.16. This represents a 67.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kyle Gano sold 36,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.70, for a total transaction of $4,830,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 140,407 shares in the company, valued at $18,632,008.90. The trade was a 20.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 61,966 shares of company stock worth $8,625,166. 4.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Neurocrine Biosciences

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NBIX. Dodge & Cox lifted its holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences by 0.6% during the second quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 5,566,814 shares of the company’s stock worth $699,693,000 after acquiring an additional 32,190 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Neurocrine Biosciences by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,730,152 shares of the company’s stock valued at $664,019,000 after purchasing an additional 468,405 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 83.7% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,773,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $388,435,000 after purchasing an additional 1,263,633 shares during the last quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. raised its stake in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. now owns 1,184,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $166,258,000 after purchasing an additional 16,543 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 169.8% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 983,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $139,494,000 after purchasing an additional 618,956 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.59% of the company’s stock.

About Neurocrine Biosciences

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ: NBIX) is a biopharmaceutical company based in San Diego, California, focused on developing treatments for neurological, endocrine and neuropsychiatric disorders. Since its founding in 1992, the company has pursued a research‐driven strategy aimed at addressing unmet medical needs in movement disorders, reproductive health and central nervous system conditions. Neurocrine’s operations encompass drug discovery, clinical development and commercialization activities.

The company’s lead marketed product, Ingrezza™ (valbenazine), is indicated for the treatment of tardive dyskinesia, a movement disorder associated with long-term antipsychotic use.