Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LXRX) Trading 6.8% Higher – Here’s Why

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:LXRX) shares shot up 6.8% on Friday . The company traded as high as $2.45 and last traded at $2.4450. 619,623 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 2,678,377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.29.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on LXRX. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $6.00 price target on shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Lexicon Pharmaceuticals from $2.30 to $3.10 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $4.55.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -34.35 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 18.77, a current ratio of 18.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $1.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $1.62.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LXRX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.00) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.04. Lexicon Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 18.64% and a negative net margin of 37.46%.The business had revenue of $21.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.79 million. On average, analysts expect that Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -0.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LXRX. CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. acquired a new stake in Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA acquired a new position in Lexicon Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Lexicon Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 43.6% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 27,459 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 8,335 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new stake in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 74.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Lexicon Pharmaceuticals

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of novel medicines through its proprietary genome biology platform. By leveraging large-scale gene knockout libraries, the company identifies potential therapeutic targets and advances them through preclinical and clinical development. Lexicon’s approach emphasizes the translation of genetic insights into targeted therapies for a range of human diseases.

The company’s most advanced product is telotristat ethyl (sold under the brand name XERMELO), an oral treatment approved for the management of carcinoid syndrome diarrhea in patients inadequately controlled by somatostatin analog therapy.