Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD)

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:ACAD) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock traders acquired 2,626 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 146% compared to the typical volume of 1,068 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $28.00 price objective on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group cut their price objective on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. They set a “hold” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Elizabeth A. Garofalo sold 4,919 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.23, for a total value of $89,673.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 17,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $320,756.85. This represents a 21.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Mark C. Schneyer sold 3,498 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.60, for a total transaction of $51,070.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 62,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $916,485.80. The trade was a 5.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,994 shares of company stock worth $313,131 in the last 90 days. 26.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its holdings in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 231.5% in the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,317 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,618 shares during the period. Virtus Fund Advisers LLC bought a new position in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $47,000. 96.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

ACAD stock opened at $17.44 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $15.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.36 and a beta of 0.47. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $13.40 and a 1 year high of $20.68.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.01. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 13.83% and a return on equity of 25.83%. The firm had revenue of $244.32 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.32 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.10 EPS. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that ACADIA Pharmaceuticals will post 0.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization innovative medicines that address unmet medical needs in central nervous system (CNS) disorders and rare diseases in the United States. The company offers NUPLAZID (pimavanserin) for the treatment of hallucinations and delusions associated with Parkinson's disease psychosis; and DAYBUE, a novel synthetic analog of the amino-terminal tripeptide of insulin-like growth factor 1 for treatment of Rett Syndrome.