Septerna, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEPN) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Septerna, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEPN) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $43.1429.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on SEPN shares. HC Wainwright raised their price target on shares of Septerna from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Truist Financial upped their target price on Septerna from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Septerna from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Septerna in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, JonesTrading assumed coverage on Septerna in a research note on Tuesday, December 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $43.00 price objective for the company.

Septerna Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of Septerna stock opened at $23.44 on Wednesday. Septerna has a 52 week low of $4.66 and a 52 week high of $32.63. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $26.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $24.09. The company has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a PE ratio of -21.12 and a beta of 3.46.

Septerna (NASDAQ:SEPN) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 9th. The company reported ($0.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by ($0.01). Septerna had a negative net margin of 106.37% and a negative return on equity of 15.85%. The company had revenue of $24.12 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.44 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Septerna will post -7.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Samira Shaikhly sold 70,453 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.10, for a total transaction of $1,979,729.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 793 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,283.30. This represents a 98.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Elizabeth Bhatt sold 4,000 shares of Septerna stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.97, for a total transaction of $115,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 174,209 shares in the company, valued at $5,046,834.73. This trade represents a 2.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 4.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Septerna

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of SEPN. Group One Trading LLC lifted its position in shares of Septerna by 111.8% during the 4th quarter. Group One Trading LLC now owns 944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 8,955 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Septerna in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new stake in Septerna in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Septerna during the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Septerna during the fourth quarter valued at about $61,000.

About Septerna

We are a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering a new era of G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) oral small molecule drug discovery powered by our proprietary Native Complex Platform™. Our industrial-scale platform aims to unlock the full potential of GPCR therapies and has led to the discovery and development of our deep pipeline of product candidates focused initially on treating patients in three therapeutic areas: endocrinology, immunology and inflammation, and metabolic diseases. GPCRs are the largest and most diverse family of cell membrane receptors and regulate physiological processes in nearly every organ system of the human body.