Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $7.54 Million Position in Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. $OCUL

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCUL) by 1,261.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 620,814 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 575,214 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.29% of Ocular Therapeutix worth $7,537,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in OCUL. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Ocular Therapeutix in the third quarter valued at approximately $80,000. Marex Group plc bought a new stake in shares of Ocular Therapeutix in the 2nd quarter valued at $115,000. Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 21.2% during the 2nd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 13,413 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $124,000 after acquiring an additional 2,343 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix during the 3rd quarter valued at $126,000. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new position in Ocular Therapeutix during the third quarter worth $132,000. Institutional investors own 59.21% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ocular Therapeutix

In other news, insider Pravin Dugel sold 124,882 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.04, for a total value of $1,128,933.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 3,033,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,419,025.12. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Donald Notman sold 11,446 shares of Ocular Therapeutix stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.04, for a total transaction of $103,471.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 366,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,311,858.24. This represents a 3.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 197,221 shares of company stock worth $1,754,805. 2.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ocular Therapeutix Stock Performance

Shares of OCUL stock opened at $7.55 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 15.39 and a quick ratio of 15.32. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $9.24 and a 200-day moving average of $11.09. Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. has a one year low of $5.80 and a one year high of $16.44. The company has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.24 and a beta of 0.91.

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.33) by $0.04. The business had revenue of $13.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.13 million. Ocular Therapeutix had a negative net margin of 511.90% and a negative return on equity of 70.68%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 22.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.29) EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. will post -0.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on OCUL. HC Wainwright raised their price target on shares of Ocular Therapeutix from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Chardan Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $21.00 target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on Ocular Therapeutix from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 20th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.78.

About Ocular Therapeutix

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of innovative therapies for diseases and conditions of the eye. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts, the company focuses on sustained-release drug delivery platforms designed to address key unmet needs in ophthalmology. Its proprietary hydrogel-based inserts and sealants aim to improve patient compliance and outcomes by providing controlled release of active pharmaceutical ingredients directly to ocular tissues.

The company’s flagship product, DEXTENZA®, is a preservative-free, sustained-release dexamethasone intracanalicular insert approved by the U.S.