American Century Companies Inc. Increases Stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND)

American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) by 17.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 407,294 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 60,548 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Ascendis Pharma A/S were worth $56,072,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legato Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 1,921 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased 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 acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 58.0% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 583 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 415.2% during the 4th 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.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Stock Performance

Shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S stock opened at $158.28 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $9.61 billion, a PE ratio of -22.29 and a beta of 0.62. Ascendis Pharma A/S has a 1 year low of $111.09 and a 1 year high of $169.37. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $143.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $136.60.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.68) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.32) by $0.64. On average, equities analysts predict that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post -4.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on ASND. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $168.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ascendis Pharma A/S has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $204.64.

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.