Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) shares gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday after Wolfe Research upgraded the stock to a strong-buy rating. The stock had previously closed at $216.56, but opened at $221.89. Ascendis Pharma A/S shares last traded at $215.0240, with a volume of 36,841 shares changing hands.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $307.00 price target (up previously from $306.00) on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a report on Friday, August 8th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $220.00 price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research report on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial started coverage on Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Friday, October 17th. They issued a “strong-buy” rating and a $271.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $290.00 price target (up from $243.00) on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $256.60.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 144.7% during the 2nd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 9,300 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,605,000 after acquiring an additional 5,500 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 291.1% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 352 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in the first quarter valued at approximately $273,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 10.4% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 585,581 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $91,269,000 after purchasing an additional 55,164 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Ascendis Pharma A/S during the second quarter worth approximately $682,000.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Stock Down 1.2%

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $202.65 and a 200 day moving average of $185.66. The stock has a market cap of $12.93 billion, a PE ratio of -40.69 and a beta of 0.44.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 12th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.17) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.41) by ($0.76). The firm had revenue of $290.24 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $246.91 million. Research analysts forecast that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post -4.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Company Profile

Ascendis Pharma A/S, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing therapies for unmet medical needs. It offers SKYTROFA for treating patients with growth hormone deficiency (GHD). The company is also developing a pipeline of three independent endocrinology rare disease product candidates in clinical development, as well as focuses on advancing oncology therapeutic candidates.