Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) have been given an average recommendation of “Buy” by the nineteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, sixteen have assigned a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $295.3889.

ASND has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Monday, March 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $290.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $342.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $256.00 price objective on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $255.00 price objective on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Monday, March 2nd.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ASND opened at $247.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.00. Ascendis Pharma A/S has a 52-week low of $153.49 and a 52-week high of $250.74. The firm has a market cap of $15.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.49 and a beta of 0.41. The business’s fifty day moving average is $232.68 and its 200 day moving average is $221.82.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $285.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $362.47 million. Research analysts predict that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post 11.73 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Ascendis Pharma A/S news, insider Flemming Steen Jensen sold 19,460 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.49, for a total value of $4,641,015.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 40.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ascendis Pharma A/S

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in Ascendis Pharma A/S in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Arax Advisory Partners increased its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 212.2% in the 4th quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 153 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new position in Ascendis Pharma A/S in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Ascendis Pharma A/S in the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 57.2% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 228 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Company Profile

Ascendis Pharma A/S is a Denmark‐based biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative therapies for rare endocrine diseases. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Hellerup, the company leverages its proprietary TransCon drug delivery platform to create long‐acting prodrugs designed to improve safety, efficacy and patient convenience. Ascendis Pharma maintains research and development operations in Europe and the United States, with clinical studies spanning North America, Europe and Asia.

The company’s lead product, lonapegsomatropin (Skytrofa®), is a once‐weekly growth hormone therapy approved by the U.S.