BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX) Lifted to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Tuesday.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on BCRX. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday. Barclays increased their price target on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $6.00 to $7.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Tuesday. JMP Securities boosted their price objective on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a market outperform rating in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an outperform rating and issued a $10.00 target price on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a buy rating and set a $12.00 price target on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $14.17.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of BCRX stock traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $7.63. The company had a trading volume of 2,179,196 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,400,497. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $4.03 and a 52-week high of $8.09. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $6.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.83. The stock has a market cap of $1.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.13 and a beta of 1.88.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.17) by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $109.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $98.30 million. The company’s revenue was up 34.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.24) earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that BioCryst Pharmaceuticals will post -0.65 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Steven K. Galson acquired 21,940 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $5.49 per share, for a total transaction of $120,450.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 51,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,014.99. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CFO Anthony Doyle purchased 36,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $5.57 per share, for a total transaction of $202,191.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 266,744 shares in the company, valued at $1,485,764.08. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Steven K. Galson acquired 21,940 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $5.49 per share, with a total value of $120,450.60. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 51,551 shares in the company, valued at $283,014.99. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 103,601 shares of company stock worth $596,338 over the last ninety days. 4.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BioCryst Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 200.0% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,658 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 3,772 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 560.5% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 6,598 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 5,599 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $54,000. Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth about $57,000. Finally, Natixis boosted its holdings in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 400.6% in the first quarter. Natixis now owns 11,684 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 9,350 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

About BioCryst Pharmaceuticals

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biotechnology company, develops oral small-molecule and protein therapeutics to treat rare diseases. The company markets peramivir injection, an intravenous neuraminidase inhibitor for the treatment of acute uncomplicated influenza under the RAPIVAB, RAPIACTA, and PERAMIFLU names; and ORLADEYO, an oral serine protease inhibitor to treat hereditary angioedema.