ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:ACAD) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:ACAD) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $31.1579.

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen raised ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup raised their target price on ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. HC Wainwright lifted their price target on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from $32.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $34.00 price objective on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, January 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director James M. Daly sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.37, for a total value of $671,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $90,397.17. This represents a 88.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark C. Schneyer sold 10,262 shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.69, for a total value of $243,106.78. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 53,338 shares in the company, valued at $1,263,577.22. The trade was a 16.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 44,346 shares of company stock valued at $1,010,957 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 26.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ACAD. Braidwell LP bought a new position in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at $50,760,000. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 496.2% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,969,711 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $42,487,000 after purchasing an additional 1,639,315 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at about $31,679,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 2,052.1% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,483,235 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,652,000 after buying an additional 1,414,315 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 390.1% during the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,648,864 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,187,000 after buying an additional 1,312,426 shares during the last quarter. 96.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $26.78 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $4.53 billion, a PE ratio of 17.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.12 and a beta of 0.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $25.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.91. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $13.40 and a fifty-two week high of $28.35.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.28. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 24.94% and a return on equity of 14.61%. The business had revenue of $278.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $276.52 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.20 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that ACADIA Pharmaceuticals will post 0.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapies for central nervous system (CNS) disorders. Established in 1993 and headquartered in San Diego, California, ACADIA’s research centers concentrate on conditions with significant unmet medical needs, including Parkinson’s disease psychosis, Alzheimer’s disease psychosis, and schizophrenia. The company utilizes a range of scientific platforms, including selective receptor modulation and precision-targeted compounds, to advance its portfolio of small-molecule therapeutics.

The company’s flagship product, NUPLAZID® (pimavanserin), received U.S.