Empire Financial Management Company LLC Cuts Stake in Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. $VNDA

Empire Financial Management Company LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:VNDA) by 16.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 922,245 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 186,000 shares during the period. Vanda Pharmaceuticals comprises approximately 1.4% of Empire Financial Management Company LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Empire Financial Management Company LLC owned about 1.53% of Vanda Pharmaceuticals worth $6,373,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vanda Pharmaceuticals by 11.2% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 3,759,559 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,979,000 after purchasing an additional 378,598 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Vanda Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,587,139 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $17,900,000 after purchasing an additional 14,336 shares during the period. AIGH Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Vanda Pharmaceuticals by 37.6% in the first quarter. AIGH Capital Management LLC now owns 2,750,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $19,002,000 after purchasing an additional 751,569 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in Vanda Pharmaceuticals by 220.0% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,139,591 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $9,821,000 after purchasing an additional 1,470,898 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Krensavage Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Vanda Pharmaceuticals by 15.2% during the third quarter. Krensavage Asset Management LLC now owns 1,180,388 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,890,000 after buying an additional 155,505 shares during the period. 88.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on VNDA. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vanda Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, July 17th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Vanda Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Vanda Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vanda Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.30.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of VNDA opened at $5.16 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $310.30 million, a P/E ratio of -1.27 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $6.88. Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. has a twelve month low of $4.14 and a twelve month high of $9.94.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VNDA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.82) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.69) by ($0.13). The firm had revenue of $51.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $54.98 million. Vanda Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 109.99% and a negative return on equity of 32.26%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. will post -2.2 EPS for the current year.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Profile

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapies for central nervous system (CNS) disorders and rare diseases. The company’s research and development efforts center on sleep-wake regulation, mood disorders, and movement disorders. Vanda’s mission is to address unmet medical needs by advancing novel molecules through clinical trials and regulatory review.

Vanda’s flagship commercial product is Hetlioz (tasimelteon), a melatonin receptor agonist approved by the U.S.