Exagen (NASDAQ:XGN) Share Price Breaks Above 50 Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Shares of Exagen Inc. (NASDAQ:XGN) crossed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $7.88 and traded as high as $8.50. Exagen shares last traded at $8.40, with a volume of 348,440 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Exagen in a report on Friday, August 7th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Exagen from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. B. Riley Financial began coverage on shares of Exagen in a research report on Friday, September 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $12.00 price objective on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of Exagen from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Finally, BTIG Research raised their target price on shares of Exagen from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $10.12.

Exagen Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $7.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.05. The company has a current ratio of 3.18, a quick ratio of 3.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96.

Exagen (NASDAQ:XGN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.19) by $0.06. The business had revenue of $19.94 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.80 million. Exagen had a negative net margin of 26.61% and a negative return on equity of 104.46%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Exagen Inc. will post -0.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Exagen

In other Exagen news, major shareholder Jorey Chernett purchased 14,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 19th. The shares were bought at an average price of $7.46 per share, for a total transaction of $104,440.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 2,618,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,534,308.40. This trade represents a 0.54% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John Aballi sold 34,294 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.87, for a total value of $269,893.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 805,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,339,599.80. This trade represents a 4.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 10.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Exagen

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new position in Exagen in the second quarter valued at about $52,000. Penbrook Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Exagen in the third quarter worth about $92,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Exagen in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $97,000. R Squared Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Exagen by 49.0% in the 1st quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 27,107 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 8,915 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Exagen by 137.4% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 62,571 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,000 after purchasing an additional 36,213 shares during the last quarter. 75.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Exagen

Exagen Inc is a commercial-stage diagnostic company focused on improving the diagnosis and management of autoimmune and rheumatic diseases. The company develops and commercializes blood tests that help physicians identify autoimmune disease, distinguish among related conditions and monitor disease activity over time.

Its principal product family is AVISE, which includes the AVISE CTD and AVISE Lupus tests, as well as monitoring and specialty tests used in the evaluation of systemic lupus erythematosus and other connective-tissue diseases.