Insider Selling: Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) Insider Sells 3,035 Shares of Stock

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCUL) insider Peter Kaiser sold 3,035 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.77, for a total transaction of $32,686.95. Following the transaction, the insider owned 264,378 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,847,351.06. This trade represents a 1.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Ocular Therapeutix Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ OCUL traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $10.77. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,364,367 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,141,407. The company has a current ratio of 13.10, a quick ratio of 13.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $9.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.13. Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. has a one year low of $6.23 and a one year high of $16.44. The company has a market cap of $2.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.58 and a beta of 0.93.

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.35) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.40) by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $13.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.20 million. Ocular Therapeutix had a negative net margin of 579.10% and a negative return on equity of 59.89%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.39) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. will post -1.47 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Ocular Therapeutix from $24.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 target price (up from $21.00) on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Chardan Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $23.00 target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 price target on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ocular Therapeutix from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $25.75.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ocular Therapeutix

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP acquired a new position in Ocular Therapeutix in the first quarter worth approximately $5,491,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Ocular Therapeutix by 145.9% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 227,808 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,930,000 after acquiring an additional 135,160 shares in the last quarter. Empire Life Investments Inc. grew its position in Ocular Therapeutix by 115.0% in the fourth quarter. Empire Life Investments Inc. now owns 540,115 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $6,557,000 after acquiring an additional 288,853 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 12.8% during the 1st quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 949,216 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $8,040,000 after purchasing an additional 107,614 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Octagon Capital Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 20.7% during the 1st quarter. Octagon Capital Advisors LP now owns 3,166,600 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $26,821,000 after purchasing an additional 543,000 shares in the last quarter. 59.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ocular Therapeutix Company Profile

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of innovative therapies for diseases and conditions of the eye. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts, the company focuses on sustained-release drug delivery platforms designed to address key unmet needs in ophthalmology. Its proprietary hydrogel-based inserts and sealants aim to improve patient compliance and outcomes by providing controlled release of active pharmaceutical ingredients directly to ocular tissues.

The company’s flagship product, DEXTENZA®, is a preservative-free, sustained-release dexamethasone intracanalicular insert approved by the U.S.