Morgan Stanley Upgrades Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) to “Overweight”

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) was upgraded by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has a $250.00 price target on the biotechnology company’s stock, up from their prior price target of $180.00. Morgan Stanley’s target price suggests a potential upside of 53.87% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on ASND. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S from $181.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $200.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Ascendis Pharma A/S from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $216.07.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Trading Down 4.8 %

Shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S stock opened at $162.47 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.88 and a beta of 0.41. Ascendis Pharma A/S has a 1-year low of $111.09 and a 1-year high of $183.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $155.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $140.86.

Ascendis Pharma A/S (NASDAQ:ASND) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The biotechnology company reported ($1.66) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.56) by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $123.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $98.56 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ascendis Pharma A/S will post -4.34 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ascendis Pharma A/S

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC boosted its stake in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 163,888 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $22,562,000 after acquiring an additional 3,274 shares during the last quarter. abrdn plc grew its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 187,180 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,769,000 after buying an additional 28,967 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 58.0% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 583 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of Ascendis Pharma A/S by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 204,482 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $28,151,000 after buying an additional 25,164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Ascendis Pharma A/S by 540.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 506 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 427 shares in the last quarter.

Ascendis Pharma A/S Company Profile

Ascendis Pharma A/S, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing therapies for unmet medical needs. It offers SKYTROFA for treating patients with growth hormone deficiency (GHD). The company is also developing a pipeline of three independent endocrinology rare disease product candidates in clinical development, as well as focuses on advancing oncology therapeutic candidates.