ARS Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SPRY) Shares Up 4.9% – Should You Buy?

ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPRY) shares were up 4.9% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $14.99 and last traded at $15.10. Approximately 296,156 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 1,283,612 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.40.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Scotiabank assumed coverage on ARS Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, ARS Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.00.

ARS Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $14.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.84. The firm has a market cap of $1.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -30.18 and a beta of 0.84.

ARS Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SPRY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 14th. The company reported ($0.35) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.35). The company had revenue of $7.97 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.48 million. Analysts expect that ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -0.55 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other ARS Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Kathleen D. Scott sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.10, for a total transaction of $705,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 7,424 shares in the company, valued at $104,678.40. This represents a 87.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Eric Karas sold 10,000 shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.00, for a total value of $140,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $107,744. The trade was a 56.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 332,971 shares of company stock worth $4,621,888. Corporate insiders own 33.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ARS Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new position in ARS Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth approximately $37,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals by 78,100.0% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 3,905 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $73,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new position in shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $75,000. Institutional investors own 68.16% of the company’s stock.

About ARS Pharmaceuticals

ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, develops treatments for severe allergic reactions. The company is developing neffy, a needle-free and low-dose intranasal epinephrine nasal spray for the emergency treatment of Type I allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. It serves healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers.