Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. $OCUL

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCUL) by 24.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 500,752 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 98,285 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ocular Therapeutix were worth $6,079,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of OCUL. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 3,136.1% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,855,706 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $45,073,000 after acquiring an additional 3,736,560 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in Ocular Therapeutix by 2,003.2% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,424,439 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $40,032,000 after buying an additional 3,261,619 shares during the period. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 38.5% during the third quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,250,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $119,822,000 after buying an additional 2,850,000 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 26.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,575,193 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $140,523,000 after buying an additional 2,411,953 shares during the period. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 902.9% in the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,189,276 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,593,000 after buying an additional 1,970,983 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 59.21% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Pravin Dugel sold 21,156 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.20, for a total value of $173,479.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 2,597,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,296,794. This trade represents a 0.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 28,999 shares of company stock valued at $237,792 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Ocular Therapeutix Trading Up 0.6%

NASDAQ OCUL opened at $8.99 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.16 and a beta of 0.90. Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $6.23 and a fifty-two week high of $16.44. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 14.73 and a current ratio of 14.81.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on OCUL. Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $18.00 price target on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $21.00 target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.78.

Ocular Therapeutix Profile

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of innovative therapies for diseases and conditions of the eye. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts, the company focuses on sustained-release drug delivery platforms designed to address key unmet needs in ophthalmology. Its proprietary hydrogel-based inserts and sealants aim to improve patient compliance and outcomes by providing controlled release of active pharmaceutical ingredients directly to ocular tissues.

The company’s flagship product, DEXTENZA®, is a preservative-free, sustained-release dexamethasone intracanalicular insert approved by the U.S.