Oculis (NASDAQ:OCS) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Oculis Holding AG (NASDAQ:OCS)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Friday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $35.00 to $40.00. The stock had previously closed at $19.48, but opened at $20.75. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Oculis shares last traded at $20.7950, with a volume of 43,282 shares changing hands.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Oculis in a research report on Friday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Oculis in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Lifesci Capital initiated coverage on Oculis in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. HC Wainwright upped their price target on Oculis from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Chardan Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $51.00 price objective on shares of Oculis in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $41.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oculis

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pivotal bioVenture Partners Investment Advisor LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Oculis by 32.4% in the 1st quarter. Pivotal bioVenture Partners Investment Advisor LLC now owns 2,300,774 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,784,000 after purchasing an additional 563,078 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Oculis during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,499,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA lifted its position in Oculis by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 97,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,883,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Oculis by 27.7% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 29,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $571,000 after buying an additional 6,384 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in Oculis during the second quarter valued at approximately $393,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 22.30% of the company’s stock.

Oculis Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.11 billion, a PE ratio of -8.43 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 4.47 and a quick ratio of 4.47. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $20.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.86.

Oculis (NASDAQ:OCS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 10th. The company reported ($0.40) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.50) by $0.10. The company had revenue of $0.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $0.23 million. Oculis had a negative net margin of 12,915.42% and a negative return on equity of 80.82%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Oculis Holding AG will post -2.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Oculis

Oculis SA (NASDAQ: OCS) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel ophthalmic therapies designed primarily to treat retinal and neuro-ophthalmic diseases. Leveraging its proprietary technology platforms, Oculis aims to deliver therapeutic agents to the back of the eye through topical or nasal administration, potentially offering an alternative to current intravitreal injections. The company’s pipeline includes OCS-01, a topical dexamethasone formulation targeting diabetic macular edema; OCS-05, a neuroprotective candidate for acute optic neuritis and idiopathic intracranial hypertension; and OC-02, a nasal spray formulation of varenicline for dry eye disease.

Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Oculis operates research and development facilities across Europe and in the United States, with a presence in Cambridge, Massachusetts.