Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESPR) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESPR) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $7.20.

ESPR has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Esperion Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 3rd. Piper Sandler began coverage on Esperion Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $9.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Esperion Therapeutics

In related news, CFO Benjamin Halladay sold 7,337 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.67, for a total transaction of $26,926.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 467,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,715,816.75. This trade represents a 1.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 15,543 shares of company stock valued at $55,709 in the last quarter. 1.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Esperion Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 209.2% during the 3rd quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 9,430 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 6,380 shares during the period. North Star Investment Management Corp. acquired a new position in Esperion Therapeutics during the second quarter worth $25,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Esperion Therapeutics during the second quarter worth $25,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC purchased a new position in Esperion Therapeutics during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Esperion Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. 47.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Esperion Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ESPR opened at $2.98 on Thursday. Esperion Therapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $0.69 and a fifty-two week high of $4.18. The company has a market cap of $712.40 million, a PE ratio of -5.96, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 1.04. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $3.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2.72.

Esperion Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ESPR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.16) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $87.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $78.33 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Esperion Therapeutics will post -0.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Esperion Therapeutics Company Profile

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of oral, low–density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C)–lowering therapies. The company’s research and development efforts center on small-molecule compounds designed to address atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease by targeting cholesterol biosynthesis pathways. Esperion seeks to provide novel treatment options for patients who require additional LDL-C reduction beyond what is achieved with statins or who are statin-intolerant.

The company’s lead products include NEXLETOL (bempedoic acid), an oral adenosine triphosphate–citrate lyase (ACL) inhibitor approved by the U.S.