Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) Given “Buy” Rating at Chardan Capital

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by Chardan Capital in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $23.00 target price on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Chardan Capital’s price objective points to a potential upside of 219.89% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on OCUL. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ocular Therapeutix from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Ocular Therapeutix from $24.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price target on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 price target on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ocular Therapeutix from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ocular Therapeutix currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $25.29.

Ocular Therapeutix Price Performance

NASDAQ:OCUL traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $7.19. 725,172 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,973,126. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 13.03 and a current ratio of 13.10. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.30. Ocular Therapeutix has a 1 year low of $6.23 and a 1 year high of $16.44. The company has a market cap of $1.58 billion, a PE ratio of -5.06 and a beta of 1.00.

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.35) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.40) by $0.05. Ocular Therapeutix had a negative net margin of 579.10% and a negative return on equity of 59.89%. The firm had revenue of $13.48 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.20 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.39) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Ocular Therapeutix will post -1.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jeffrey S. Heier sold 3,296 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.78, for a total value of $35,530.88. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 318,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,431,554.28. This trade represents a 1.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 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. Also, insider Peter Kaiser sold 3,035 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.77, for a total transaction of $32,686.95. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 264,378 shares in the company, valued at $2,847,351.06. This represents a 1.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 29,877 shares of company stock valued at $321,827. Insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ocular Therapeutix

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ocular Therapeutix in the second quarter worth approximately $190,278,000. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,777,777 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $130,842,000 after acquiring an additional 527,777 shares during the last quarter. Summer Road LLC lifted its position in Ocular Therapeutix by 6.9% during the first quarter. Summer Road LLC now owns 11,879,825 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $100,622,000 after buying an additional 771,270 shares in the last quarter. Octagon Capital Advisors LP grew its stake in Ocular Therapeutix by 20.7% during the first quarter. Octagon Capital Advisors LP now owns 3,166,600 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,821,000 after buying an additional 543,000 shares during the period. Finally, Commodore Capital LP purchased a new stake in Ocular Therapeutix during the first quarter worth approximately $21,810,000. 59.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ocular Therapeutix Company Profile

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for diseases and conditions affecting the eye. The company uses its proprietary hydrogel-based formulation and delivery technologies to create sustained-release treatments intended to improve drug delivery, reduce dosing frequency and address unmet needs in ophthalmology.

Its commercial product is DEXTENZA, a corticosteroid ophthalmic insert that is placed in the canaliculus by a healthcare professional.