Evercore Downgrades Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CRNX) to Hold

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CRNX) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Evercore from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on CRNX. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from $62.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Citizens Jmp downgraded shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Lifesci Capital lowered Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler cut Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Crinetics Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.27.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.0%

NASDAQ CRNX opened at $83.49 on Tuesday. Crinetics Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $25.83 and a 1 year high of $83.63. The company has a market cap of $8.80 billion, a PE ratio of -16.27 and a beta of 0.23. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $38.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.03.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CRNX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($1.23) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.22) by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $10.73 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.51 million. Crinetics Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 43.96% and a negative net margin of 2,747.18%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2873.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($1.04) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Crinetics Pharmaceuticals will post -4.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Stephanie Okey sold 6,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.67, for a total value of $246,123.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $228,288. This represents a 51.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Coelho Rogerio Vivaldi sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $120,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 19,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $769,000. This represents a 13.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Crinetics Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 107.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 639 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth approximately $45,000. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 34.6% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arax Advisory Partners raised its holdings in shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 131.2% during the 4th quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 1,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 850 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.51% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Crinetics Pharmaceuticals

Here are the key news stories impacting Crinetics Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vertex’s $85-per-share cash acquisition gives CRNX holders a firm takeout price and validates the company’s rare-disease franchise. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The deal highlights the commercial value of PALSONIFY and the upside in Atumelnant, reinforcing Crinetics’ strategic appeal. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Several firms have lifted targets or reiterated bullish views near the deal price, suggesting limited downside unless the transaction changes. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: TD Cowen issued a “Hold” rating, while other brokers also moved to hold, signaling that the stock may already be close to fair value under the acquisition terms. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: An investor-alert law firm announced an investigation into the fairness of the proposed sale process, which adds legal headline risk but does not necessarily change the deal economics. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple analyst downgrades to “Hold” and an insider sale are weighing on sentiment around the stock’s post-rally valuation. Article Title

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapeutics for rare endocrine diseases. The company’s proprietary platform leverages insights into hormone receptor signaling to design small-molecule candidates that address conditions driven by dysregulated hormone activity. Crinetics’ research efforts center on targeting somatostatin, vasopressin and other GPCR-mediated pathways with orally bioavailable molecules intended to improve patient convenience and adherence.

The company’s lead product candidate, paltusotine (formerly CRN04777), is a selective, non-peptide somatostatin receptor type 2 agonist being evaluated for the treatment of acromegaly and carcinoid syndrome diarrhea.