Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $126.14, but opened at $138.75. Ascendis Pharma A/S shares last traded at $144.08, with a volume of 490,196 shares trading hands.

The biotechnology company reported ($0.68) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.32) by $0.64.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on ASND shares. UBS Group assumed coverage on Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $190.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $165.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $160.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ascendis Pharma A/S has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $191.57.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 394.0% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 247 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 415.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 407 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new position in Ascendis Pharma A/S during the third quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 58.0% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 583 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Trading Up 14.7 %

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $131.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $132.22. The company has a market cap of $8.78 billion, a PE ratio of -17.83 and a beta of 0.64.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Company Profile

Ascendis Pharma A/S, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing therapies for unmet medical needs. It offers SKYTROFA for treating patients with growth hormone deficiency (GHD). The company is also developing a pipeline of three independent endocrinology rare disease product candidates in clinical development, as well as focuses on advancing oncology therapeutic candidates.