Assertio Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASRT) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Assertio Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASRT) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $18.00.

Several analysts have issued reports on ASRT shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Assertio from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Assertio in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Lake Street Capital restated a “hold” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective (down from $45.00) on shares of Assertio in a research report on Thursday. HC Wainwright restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective (down from $35.00) on shares of Assertio in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Assertio from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Assertio

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASRT. Nantahala Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Assertio by 4.4% in the second quarter. Nantahala Capital Management LLC now owns 8,810,073 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,649,000 after buying an additional 370,311 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its stake in shares of Assertio by 536.0% during the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 381,584 shares of the company’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 321,584 shares during the period. Opaleye Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Assertio during the 4th quarter worth about $2,585,000. Perritt Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Assertio by 51.6% during the 3rd quarter. Perritt Capital Management Inc now owns 350,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,000 after purchasing an additional 119,281 shares during the period. Finally, Edgewood Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Assertio during the 4th quarter worth about $975,000. 48.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Assertio Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ASRT traded down $0.37 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $18.05. 475,185 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 86,520. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $13.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.34. Assertio has a one year low of $8.25 and a one year high of $20.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market cap of $116.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.71 and a beta of 0.43.

Assertio (NASDAQ:ASRT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 16th. The company reported ($1.86) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($3.05) by $1.19. Assertio had a negative return on equity of 30.26% and a negative net margin of 25.59%.The business had revenue of $13.54 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.20 million. Research analysts anticipate that Assertio will post -0.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Assertio

Assertio Therapeutics, Inc, formerly known as Depomed, is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of therapies for central nervous system (CNS) disorders, including neuropathic pain, migraine and breakthrough cancer pain. The company’s commercial portfolio includes three FDA-approved products—Qutenza (8% capsaicin) for postherpetic neuralgia, Butrans (buprenorphine) transdermal system for chronic pain and Onsolis (fentanyl buccal soluble film) for breakthrough cancer pain—which are marketed primarily in the United States under licensing agreements with global partners.

In addition to its marketed therapies, Assertio maintains a pipeline of preclinical and clinical-stage candidates targeting a range of pain and neurological conditions.