Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) Hits New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday after Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock from $160.00 to $170.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Neurocrine Biosciences traded as high as $148.75 and last traded at $146.87, with a volume of 181238 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $147.12.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on NBIX. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $174.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Neurocrine Biosciences from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Evercore ISI began coverage on Neurocrine Biosciences in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $175.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Neurocrine Biosciences from $200.00 to $216.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Neurocrine Biosciences presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $152.96.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Eric Benevich sold 19,818 shares of Neurocrine Biosciences stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.36, for a total transaction of $2,642,928.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 40,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,438,154.08. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Eric Benevich sold 19,818 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.36, for a total value of $2,642,928.48. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 40,778 shares in the company, valued at $5,438,154.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Ingrid Delaet sold 273 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.55, for a total transaction of $38,370.15. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,507 shares in the company, valued at $1,055,108.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 98,697 shares of company stock valued at $13,377,515 over the last 90 days. 4.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Neurocrine Biosciences

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences during the first quarter worth $26,000. RFP Financial Group LLC increased its position in Neurocrine Biosciences by 346.5% during the 1st quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Headinvest LLC bought a new position in Neurocrine Biosciences during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 85.0% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 92.59% of the company’s stock.

Neurocrine Biosciences Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $138.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $136.96. The company has a market capitalization of $14.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.61 and a beta of 0.37.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.62). Neurocrine Biosciences had a return on equity of 17.45% and a net margin of 18.65%. The business had revenue of $515.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $512.21 million. On average, analysts expect that Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Neurocrine Biosciences Company Profile

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc discovers, develops, and markets pharmaceuticals for neurological, neuroendocrine, and neuropsychiatric disorders in the United States and internationally. The company's products include INGREZZA for tardive dyskinesia and chorea associated with Huntington's disease; ALKINDI for adrenal insufficiency; Efmody capsules for classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia; Orilissa tablets for endometriosis; and Oriahnn capsules to treat uterine fibroids.