Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) Shares Gap Up to $7.79

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCUL) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $7.79, but opened at $7.97. Ocular Therapeutix shares last traded at $7.87, with a volume of 51,224 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on OCUL. Bank of America began coverage on Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Friday, February 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $15.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Ocular Therapeutix from $10.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $24.00 target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Tuesday. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $12.00 target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Ocular Therapeutix from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ocular Therapeutix presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $16.80.

Ocular Therapeutix Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $5.25. The company has a quick ratio of 6.59, a current ratio of 6.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82.

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.28) EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.28). The business had revenue of $14.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.31 million. Ocular Therapeutix had a negative return on equity of 321.12% and a negative net margin of 138.15%. Equities research analysts forecast that Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. will post -0.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ocular Therapeutix news, major shareholder Summer Road Llc bought 930,851 shares of Ocular Therapeutix stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $7.52 per share, with a total value of $6,999,999.52. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 8,591,401 shares in the company, valued at $64,607,335.52. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, major shareholder Summer Road Llc acquired 930,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was bought at an average price of $7.52 per share, with a total value of $6,999,999.52. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 8,591,401 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $64,607,335.52. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Antony C. Mattessich sold 18,338 shares of Ocular Therapeutix stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.95, for a total value of $90,773.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 427,943 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,118,317.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 39,366 shares of company stock valued at $194,862. Corporate insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 84.4% during the first quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,751 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 2,175 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 61.1% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 9,225 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 3,500 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 6,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix during the third quarter worth $37,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix during the third quarter worth $38,000. 59.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ocular Therapeutix

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the formulation, development, and commercialization of therapies for diseases and conditions of the eye using its bioresorbable hydrogel-based formulation technology in the United States. The company markets DEXTENZA, a dexamethasone ophthalmic insert to treat post-surgical ocular inflammation and pain following ophthalmic surgery, as well as allergic conjunctivitis.