Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The company traded as high as $271.89 and last traded at $261.58, with a volume of 2653983 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $238.01.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on ASND shares. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Monday, March 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $290.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered Ascendis Pharma A/S from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 20th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $329.00 price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a report on Friday, May 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $255.00 price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $332.00 price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $295.39.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Trading Up 9.9%

The company has a market capitalization of $16.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.17 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.00. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $232.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $225.41.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $285.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $362.47 million. On average, research analysts expect that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Ascendis Pharma A/S

In other Ascendis Pharma A/S news, insider Flemming Steen Jensen sold 19,460 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.49, for a total transaction of $4,641,015.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jean Jacques Bienaime bought 400 shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were bought at an average price of $237.80 per share, for a total transaction of $95,120.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $95,120. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 40.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ascendis Pharma A/S

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 4.0% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 1,441 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $249,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Certuity LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 1,170 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $249,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. Personal CFO Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $347,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 34.0% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 272 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 15.1% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 550 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $117,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Company Profile

Ascendis Pharma A/S is a Denmark‐based biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative therapies for rare endocrine diseases. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Hellerup, the company leverages its proprietary TransCon drug delivery platform to create long‐acting prodrugs designed to improve safety, efficacy and patient convenience. Ascendis Pharma maintains research and development operations in Europe and the United States, with clinical studies spanning North America, Europe and Asia.

The company’s lead product, lonapegsomatropin (Skytrofa®), is a once‐weekly growth hormone therapy approved by the U.S.