Septerna (NASDAQ:SEPN) Shares Down 8% – Time to Sell?

Septerna, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEPN)’s share price dropped 8% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $40.30 and last traded at $40.41. Approximately 175,984 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 51% from the average session volume of 362,388 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.93.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on SEPN shares. JonesTrading lifted their price objective on Septerna from $43.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Septerna from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Septerna from $38.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus set a $49.00 price target on shares of Septerna in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, HC Wainwright increased their price target on shares of Septerna from $40.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.44.

Septerna Trading Down 7.6%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -75.13 and a beta of 2.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $36.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $30.09.

Septerna (NASDAQ:SEPN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported ($0.29) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.43) by $0.14. Septerna had a negative net margin of 24.51% and a negative return on equity of 9.57%. The firm had revenue of $26.75 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.22 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that Septerna, Inc. will post -1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Septerna

In other news, SVP Daniel D. Long sold 3,334 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.47, for a total value of $114,922.98. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 96,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,323,321.64. This represents a 3.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Elizabeth Bhatt sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.00, for a total value of $1,100,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 174,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,665,196. The trade was a 12.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 72,828 shares of company stock worth $2,684,314. Corporate insiders own 5.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Group One Trading LLC increased its stake in Septerna by 111.8% during the 4th quarter. Group One Trading LLC now owns 944 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 8,955 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Septerna during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Septerna in the third quarter worth about $36,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Septerna in the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Septerna during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $61,000.

Septerna Company Profile

We are a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering a new era of G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) oral small molecule drug discovery powered by our proprietary Native Complex Platform™. Our industrial-scale platform aims to unlock the full potential of GPCR therapies and has led to the discovery and development of our deep pipeline of product candidates focused initially on treating patients in three therapeutic areas: endocrinology, immunology and inflammation, and metabolic diseases. GPCRs are the largest and most diverse family of cell membrane receptors and regulate physiological processes in nearly every organ system of the human body.