Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:RARE) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:RARE) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has $36.00 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $80.00.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on RARE. Guggenheim cut their target price on Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $43.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $50.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $45.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Wedbush decreased their price objective on Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical in a research note on Monday, August 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $36.63.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Stock Up 3.0%

Shares of RARE opened at $15.30 on Thursday. Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical has a 12-month low of $13.81 and a 12-month high of $39.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.62 and a beta of 0.31. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $27.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.97.

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:RARE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.90) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.22) by $0.32. Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical had a negative return on equity of 1,024.42% and a negative net margin of 81.79%.The company had revenue of $214.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $183.08 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($1.17) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 28.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical will post -3.98 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

In other news, EVP Karah Parschauer sold 1,899 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.62, for a total value of $46,753.38. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 94,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,325,654.44. This represents a 1.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Corsee Sanders sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.05, for a total transaction of $50,100.00. Following the sale, the director owned 21,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $528,429.75. This trade represents a 8.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RARE. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical in the second quarter valued at approximately $355,746,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 3,137.6% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 3,388,117 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $113,129,000 after acquiring an additional 3,283,467 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 1,030.4% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,257,671 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $47,298,000 after acquiring an additional 2,057,951 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its holdings in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by 614.1% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 2,167,729 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $65,205,000 after purchasing an additional 1,864,164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical during the 4th quarter valued at $29,004,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.67% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

Here are the key news stories impacting Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts still see substantial potential upside after the selloff. Barclays maintained an “overweight” rating with a $32 price target, while Jefferies, Citigroup, TD Cowen, Canaccord Genuity, Cantor Fitzgerald and HC Wainwright retained bullish ratings despite sharply reducing their targets.
• Positive Sentiment: Ultragenyx is evaluating “significant” cost reductions following the trial failure, which could help preserve cash and improve the company’s financial outlook. Investors are also focusing on its existing commercial rare-disease portfolio. Ultragenyx to weigh significant cost cuts as Angelman drug fails key study
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option activity and speculation that Ultragenyx could become an acquisition target provide potential—but highly speculative—support for the stock. Ultragenyx potential M&A target
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views are increasingly divided. Goldman Sachs lowered its target to $19 and moved to “neutral,” while Barclays remains “overweight” at $32. Jefferies and Citi kept “buy” ratings but reduced targets to $28. The wide range reflects uncertainty over Ultragenyx’s post-trial growth prospects.
• Negative Sentiment: RBC downgraded the company to “hold,” while Bank of America, JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Baird, Evercore, William Blair and others also reduced ratings or targets. Baird and Evercore now see only limited upside, signaling diminished confidence in the pipeline.
• Negative Sentiment: The Angelman syndrome failure creates greater dependence on Ultragenyx’s existing products and other pipeline programs. The company is weighing the future of the program, adding uncertainty around research spending, revenue growth and long-term valuation. Ultragenyx Angelman syndrome trial failure

About Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for rare and ultra-rare genetic disorders. Since its founding in 2010 and headquarters in Novato, California, the company has built expertise in protein replacement therapies, small molecules and gene therapy approaches to address high-unmet medical needs. Ultragenyx applies a precision medicine model, leveraging both in-house research and strategic collaborations to advance its product pipeline from discovery through regulatory approval.

The company’s commercial portfolio includes Crysvita (burosumab-tmyl) for X-linked hypophosphatemia, Mepsevii (vestronidase alfa-vjbk) for mucopolysaccharidosis VII and Dojolvi (triheptanoin) for long-chain fatty acid oxidation disorders.