Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) Upgraded by Zacks Research to “Hold” Rating

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research report on Friday, July 17th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 price target (up from $21.00) on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix from $24.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Chardan Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $23.00 target price on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ocular Therapeutix from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $25.75.

Ocular Therapeutix Stock Performance

Ocular Therapeutix stock opened at $10.10 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $9.25 and a 200-day moving average of $9.06. The firm has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.11 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 13.10, a quick ratio of 13.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Ocular Therapeutix has a 1-year low of $6.23 and a 1-year high of $16.44.

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.35) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.40) by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $13.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.20 million. Ocular Therapeutix had a negative return on equity of 59.89% and a negative net margin of 579.10%.The business’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.39) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Ocular Therapeutix will post -1.47 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Pravin Dugel sold 21,156 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.20, for a total value of $173,479.20. Following the transaction, the insider owned 2,597,170 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,296,794. This represents a 0.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last three months, insiders have sold 28,999 shares of company stock worth $237,792. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ocular Therapeutix

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Ocular Therapeutix during the 2nd quarter valued at about $190,278,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 3,136.1% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,855,706 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $45,073,000 after acquiring an additional 3,736,560 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 2,003.2% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,424,439 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $40,032,000 after purchasing an additional 3,261,619 shares during the last quarter. Commodore Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix during the first quarter valued at approximately $21,810,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Ocular Therapeutix by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,575,193 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $140,523,000 after purchasing an additional 2,411,953 shares during the period. 59.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ocular Therapeutix Company Profile

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of innovative therapies for diseases and conditions of the eye. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts, the company focuses on sustained-release drug delivery platforms designed to address key unmet needs in ophthalmology. Its proprietary hydrogel-based inserts and sealants aim to improve patient compliance and outcomes by providing controlled release of active pharmaceutical ingredients directly to ocular tissues.

The company’s flagship product, DEXTENZA®, is a preservative-free, sustained-release dexamethasone intracanalicular insert approved by the U.S.