Citigroup Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LXRX) Stock

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LXRX) had its price objective increased by analysts at Citigroup from $2.10 to $2.30 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Citigroup’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 37.31% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. HC Wainwright increased their price target on Lexicon Pharmaceuticals from $4.00 to $6.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Lexicon Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $4.15.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

LXRX stock traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $1.68. 696,355 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,978,082. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $1.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 4.87 and a current ratio of 4.88. The stock has a market cap of $709.66 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.96 and a beta of 0.94. Lexicon Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $0.32 and a fifty-two week high of $1.83.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LXRX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.04) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by $0.03. The business had revenue of $5.49 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.14 million. Lexicon Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 101.08% and a negative return on equity of 41.94%. Research analysts predict that Lexicon Pharmaceuticals will post -0.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lexicon Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Raymond Debbane purchased 100,000 shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1.47 per share, with a total value of $147,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,904,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,799,153.42. This trade represents a 5.54% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Invus Global Management, Llc acquired 1,538,462 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $1.30 per share, for a total transaction of $2,000,000.60. Following the purchase, the director owned 1,538,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,000,000.60. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have acquired 1,790,462 shares of company stock valued at $2,369,981. 13.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LXRX. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 594,883 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $684,000 after buying an additional 73,480 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals by 25.9% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 4,821,733 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $5,545,000 after acquiring an additional 991,073 shares in the last quarter. Ishara Investments LP bought a new position in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,012,000. Finally, ExodusPoint Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Lexicon Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $309,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.70% of the company’s stock.

About Lexicon Pharmaceuticals

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of novel medicines through its proprietary genome biology platform. By leveraging large-scale gene knockout libraries, the company identifies potential therapeutic targets and advances them through preclinical and clinical development. Lexicon’s approach emphasizes the translation of genetic insights into targeted therapies for a range of human diseases.

The company’s most advanced product is telotristat ethyl (sold under the brand name XERMELO), an oral treatment approved for the management of carcinoid syndrome diarrhea in patients inadequately controlled by somatostatin analog therapy.