Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. Has $690,000 Position in Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX)

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,057 shares of the company’s stock after selling 243 shares during the period. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences were worth $690,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NBIX. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its position in Neurocrine Biosciences by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 28,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,836,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its position in Neurocrine Biosciences by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 22,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,052,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its stake in Neurocrine Biosciences by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 2,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $348,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences by 99.1% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 20,633 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,816,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.59% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kevin Charles Gorman sold 5,844 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.69, for a total value of $681,936.36. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 521,618 shares in the company, valued at $60,867,604.42. This trade represents a 1.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Ingrid Delaet sold 272 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.10, for a total value of $37,563.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,507 shares in the company, valued at $346,216.70. The trade was a 9.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 233,178 shares of company stock valued at $33,906,594. 4.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NBIX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $154.00 to $148.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $165.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $183.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $165.38.

Neurocrine Biosciences Price Performance

Shares of Neurocrine Biosciences stock opened at $113.16 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $124.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $124.94. Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $105.18 and a fifty-two week high of $157.98. The firm has a market cap of $11.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.62 by ($0.62). Neurocrine Biosciences had a net margin of 14.49% and a return on equity of 13.38%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. will post 4.28 EPS for the current year.

Neurocrine Biosciences declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Friday, February 21st that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 4.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Neurocrine Biosciences

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.