Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) Cut to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on NBIX. Wedbush decreased their price target on Neurocrine Biosciences from $157.00 to $147.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $184.00 to $179.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $172.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $154.00 to $148.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $162.00 to $176.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Neurocrine Biosciences has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $165.24.

Neurocrine Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of NBIX opened at $111.92 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $126.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $125.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.16 billion, a PE ratio of 34.02, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. Neurocrine Biosciences has a fifty-two week low of $105.18 and a fifty-two week high of $157.98.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.00 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Neurocrine Biosciences will post 4.28 EPS for the current year.

Neurocrine Biosciences announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, February 21st that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 4.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Neurocrine Biosciences

In other news, insider Ingrid Delaet sold 272 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.10, for a total value of $37,563.20. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Julie Cooke sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.28, for a total value of $82,796.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 18,831 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,227,330.68. The trade was a 3.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 233,178 shares of company stock worth $33,906,594 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Neurocrine Biosciences

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in Neurocrine Biosciences in the 4th quarter valued at $236,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 762,557 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,089,000 after acquiring an additional 15,266 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 298,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,416,000 after purchasing an additional 4,100 shares during the period. Tri Ri Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in Neurocrine Biosciences in the third quarter valued at about $3,236,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in the 4th quarter worth approximately $379,000. 92.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.