August 20, 2023
Russell Investments Group Ltd. has recently announced an increase in its stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. The investment firm raised its ownership by 66.2% during the first quarter, according to the company’s most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Prior to this increase, Russell Investments Group Ltd. held 182,237 shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical stock. Following the additional purchase of 72,595 shares during the quarter, their total ownership now amounts to approximately 0.26% of the biopharmaceutical company’s outstanding shares. At present, these shares are valued at $7,308,000.
This news comes alongside a recent transaction involving Director Corazon (Corsee) D. Sanders selling 585 shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical stock on June 30th for an average price of $46.76 per share. With a total transaction value of $27,354.60, Director Sanders now maintains ownership of 8,985 shares in the company with a market value of $420,138.60.
Moreover, Director Sanders had also previously sold 1,485 shares on June 8th at an average price of $51.65 per share amounting to a total transaction value of $76,700.25. Following this sale, Director Sanders currently holds approximately 9,570 shares in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical worth $494,290.
These transactions were disclosed by Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical in legal filings with the SEC via accessible hyperlinks provided within their disclosure statements.
It is worth noting that over the last quarter alone, insiders have sold a total of 2,375 company shares valued at $118,756. As it stands now, corporate insiders own roughly 6.80% of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical’s stock.
Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc., listed on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol RARE, is a biopharmaceutical company committed to developing new treatments for rare and ultra-rare diseases. With their focus on innovative therapies, the company has garnered attention from prominent investment firms like Russell Investments Group Ltd.
Investors and stakeholders will undoubtedly be keeping a close eye on Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical’s future developments, as its innovative pipeline of treatments holds promise for patients with unmet medical needs.
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Institutional Investors Show Growing Interest in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical as Research Analysts Maintain Mixed Ratings
On August 20, 2023, it was reported that various institutional investors have been actively buying and selling shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical, a biopharmaceutical company. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd., for instance, increased its stake in the company by 33.6% in the first quarter of the year. They now own 951 shares of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical’s stock, which are valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares.
Another investor, Quadrant Capital Group LLC, also increased its stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by a significant margin. They raised their ownership by 111.4% in the fourth quarter and now possess 924 shares worth $43,000.
Lazard Asset Management LLC followed suit by increasing its stake in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical as well. In the first quarter, they raised their ownership by 36.6%, owning 896 shares valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares.
Moreover, Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new stake worth $141,000 in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical during the fourth quarter. Similarly, National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new stake worth $211,000 during the first quarter. These moves indicate a strong interest from institutional investors towards Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical.
It is worth noting that approximately 96.56% of the company’s stock is currently owned by institutional investors, pointing to their substantial influence and confidence in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical.
A number of equities research analysts have also commented on the performance of Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical and issued reports concerning the company. StockNews.com recently covered Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical and assigned a “hold” rating to it.
In addition to this coverage, Wedbush reduced their price objective for UltraGenyx Pharmaceuticals’ stock from $49 to $47 on August 4th based on their research findings.
Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical, giving the company an “overweight” rating and setting a price objective of $114 on April 26th.
Evercore ISI also upgraded Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating while raising their price objective from $60 to $80 on June 6th. Lastly, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a price objective of $82 for Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical stock on August 1st.
Based on data from Bloomberg, Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical currently holds a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” according to three investment analysts. The average price target for the company’s stock is estimated to be $81.21.
In terms of its financial performance, Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical started the day with shares trading at $35.09 on NASDAQ RARE. The company has a market cap of around $2.51 billion and possesses a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.43. Additionally, it has a beta value of 0.86.
Ultragenyx Pharmaceuticals’ shares have experienced fluctuation over the past year, with its lowest point reaching $33.36 and its highest point reaching $54.98 during this period.
Regarding earnings, Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical announced its quarterly earnings data on August 3rd with disappointing results. The biopharmaceutical company reported earnings per share (EPS) of ($2.25) for the quarter, falling short of the consensus estimate by ($0.14).
Moreover, Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical recorded revenue of $108.30 million during the quarter, which was slightly higher than the expected revenue of $107.10 million.
Despite the negative earnings per share and net margin marked at 178.91%, Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical observed a year-over-year increase in revenue by 21.3% during this period.
Analysts in equities research anticipate that Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. will post -8.58 EPS for the current year, taking into account these financials.
In conclusion, institutional investors have shown considerable interest in Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical by both increasing their stakes and acquiring new ones. Although there is a mix of ratings from equities research analysts, the consensus leans towards a “Moderate Buy” rating for the company. Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical’s recent quarterly earnings showed a shortfall in expected results but still displayed growth in revenue compared to the previous year.
