ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD) Raised to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Sunday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $37.00 price objective on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $34.00 price target on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, January 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, December 29th. UBS Group increased their target price on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, ACADIA Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.16.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

ACAD opened at $26.59 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $25.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.94. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $13.40 and a one year high of $28.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.12 and a beta of 0.68.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.28. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 14.61% and a net margin of 24.94%.The firm had revenue of $278.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $276.52 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.20 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that ACADIA Pharmaceuticals will post 0.7 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Mark C. Schneyer sold 10,262 shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.69, for a total value of $243,106.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 53,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,263,577.22. This trade represents a 16.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider James Kihara sold 4,084 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.69, for a total transaction of $96,749.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 25,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $593,624.02. The trade was a 14.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 44,346 shares of company stock worth $1,010,957 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 28.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ACAD. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth $511,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $31,679,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,434,376 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $52,509,000 after buying an additional 65,914 shares in the last quarter. TFG Asset Management GP Ltd increased its holdings in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 50.8% in the 2nd quarter. TFG Asset Management GP Ltd now owns 161,396 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,481,000 after buying an additional 54,396 shares during the period. Finally, Atria Investments Inc increased its holdings in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 26.1% in the 2nd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 22,087 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $476,000 after buying an additional 4,574 shares during the period. 96.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapies for central nervous system (CNS) disorders. Established in 1993 and headquartered in San Diego, California, ACADIA’s research centers concentrate on conditions with significant unmet medical needs, including Parkinson’s disease psychosis, Alzheimer’s disease psychosis, and schizophrenia. The company utilizes a range of scientific platforms, including selective receptor modulation and precision-targeted compounds, to advance its portfolio of small-molecule therapeutics.

The company’s flagship product, NUPLAZID® (pimavanserin), received U.S.