Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) Shares Bought by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) by 11.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 93,406 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,824 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences were worth $12,750,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NBIX. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences by 15.1% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 7,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $908,000 after buying an additional 1,035 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its holdings in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 12.3% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 12,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,498,000 after acquiring an additional 1,426 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 14,590 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,681,000 after acquiring an additional 1,639 shares in the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. raised its position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 22.0% during the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 1,935 shares of the company’s stock worth $223,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Neurocrine Biosciences by 171.9% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 348 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. 92.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on NBIX shares. Wedbush cut their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $157.00 to $147.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Guggenheim cut their target price on Neurocrine Biosciences from $165.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $166.90.

Neurocrine Biosciences Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of NBIX stock opened at $115.02 on Friday. Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. has a 12-month low of $110.95 and a 12-month high of $157.98. The company has a market cap of $11.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.96 and a beta of 0.33. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $137.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $130.54.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by ($0.62). Neurocrine Biosciences had a net margin of 14.49% and a return on equity of 13.45%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Kevin Charles Gorman sold 146,105 shares of Neurocrine Biosciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.46, for a total transaction of $21,836,853.30. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 514,596 shares in the company, valued at approximately $76,911,518.16. This trade represents a 22.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Julie Cooke sold 1,740 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.89, for a total value of $266,028.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 18,202 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,782,903.78. This represents a 8.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 236,600 shares of company stock valued at $34,348,261. Corporate insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

About Neurocrine Biosciences

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc discovers, develops, and markets pharmaceuticals for neurological, neuroendocrine, and neuropsychiatric disorders in the United States and internationally. The company’s products include INGREZZA for tardive dyskinesia and chorea associated with Huntington’s disease; ALKINDI for adrenal insufficiency; Efmody capsules for classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia; Orilissa tablets for endometriosis; and Oriahnn capsules to treat uterine fibroids.