Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRX) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRX) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $33.20.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CPRX. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Catalyst Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Zacks Research lowered Catalyst Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Catalyst Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, September 21st.

Insider Activity at Catalyst Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director David S. Tierney sold 26,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.20, for a total value of $525,200.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 379,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,668,324. This represents a 6.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Steve Miller sold 115,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.28, for a total transaction of $2,332,200.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 949,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,259,165.64. This trade represents a 10.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 243,970 shares of company stock worth $4,927,241. 10.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Catalyst Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Algert Global LLC grew its position in shares of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 48,390 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,173,000 after buying an additional 470 shares during the period. Mission Wealth Management LP boosted its stake in Catalyst Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% during the second quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 10,620 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $230,000 after acquiring an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp grew its holdings in Catalyst Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% in the first quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 38,847 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $942,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in Catalyst Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the second quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 149,887 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,253,000 after purchasing an additional 577 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Catalyst Pharmaceuticals by 26.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,791 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.22% of the company’s stock.

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $20.84 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $20.33 and its 200-day moving average is $22.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.55 billion, a PE ratio of 12.63, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.79. Catalyst Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $19.05 and a fifty-two week high of $26.58.

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, October 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $200.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the biopharmaceutical company to reacquire up to 8.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

About Catalyst Pharmaceuticals

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing therapies for people with rare debilitating, chronic neuromuscular, and neurological diseases in the United States. It offers Firdapse, an amifampridine phosphate tablets for the treatment of patients with lambert-eaton myasthenic syndrome (LEMS); and Ruzurgi for the treatment of pediatric LEMS patients.