Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) Stock Rating Upgraded by UBS Group

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) was upgraded by analysts at UBS Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday, Zacks reports.

OCUL has been the topic of a number of other reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Chardan Capital reissued a “buy” rating and set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised Ocular Therapeutix from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Ocular Therapeutix from $24.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.86.

Ocular Therapeutix Stock Down 4.2%

Ocular Therapeutix stock opened at $7.24 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.59 billion, a PE ratio of -5.10 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 13.03 and a current ratio of 13.10. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $9.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $9.25. Ocular Therapeutix has a twelve month low of $6.23 and a twelve month high of $16.44.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jeffrey S. Heier sold 10,869 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.05, for a total transaction of $76,626.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 307,457 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,167,571.85. This represents a 3.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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. Also, insider Pravin Dugel sold 21,649 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.77, for a total value of $233,159.73. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,525,429 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,198,870.33. This trade represents a 0.85% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 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. Insiders have sold 62,720 shares of company stock valued at $556,247 in the last three months. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in OCUL. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ocular Therapeutix in the first quarter valued at about $5,491,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix in the second quarter worth about $5,099,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 135,160 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 44.4% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 1,415,913 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $13,904,000 after purchasing an additional 435,156 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix during the 2nd quarter worth about $5,433,000. 59.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ocular Therapeutix Company Profile

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for diseases and conditions affecting the eye. The company uses its proprietary hydrogel-based formulation and delivery technologies to create sustained-release treatments intended to improve drug delivery, reduce dosing frequency and address unmet needs in ophthalmology.

Its commercial product is DEXTENZA, a corticosteroid ophthalmic insert that is placed in the canaliculus by a healthcare professional.