Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Has $687.89 Million Stock Position in Ascendis Pharma A/S $ASND

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership decreased its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) by 13.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,225,885 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 494,995 shares during the period. Ascendis Pharma A/S comprises approximately 1.0% of Artisan Partners Limited Partnership’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership owned about 0.05% of Ascendis Pharma A/S worth $687,888,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ASND. Perceptive Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S during the second quarter worth $166,367,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 95.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,798,931 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $357,645,000 after buying an additional 880,836 shares in the last quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP boosted its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 200.0% during the third quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP now owns 600,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $119,286,000 after buying an additional 400,000 shares in the last quarter. Spyglass Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S during the third quarter worth $77,267,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,026,407 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $218,871,000 after buying an additional 232,730 shares in the last quarter.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Stock Performance

Ascendis Pharma A/S stock opened at $231.20 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $232.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $223.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Ascendis Pharma A/S has a 12-month low of $160.86 and a 12-month high of $250.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.67 and a beta of 0.39.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $285.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $362.47 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post 14.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Ascendis Pharma A/S

In other Ascendis Pharma A/S news, Director Jean Jacques Bienaime purchased 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $237.80 per share, with a total value of $95,120.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $95,120. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Flemming Steen Jensen sold 19,460 shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.49, for a total value of $4,641,015.40. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 40.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on ASND. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $262.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $255.00 price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $332.00 price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Monday, May 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $355.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ascendis Pharma A/S presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $295.39.

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.