Great Lakes Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) by 56.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,575 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,832 shares during the quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Neurocrine Biosciences were worth $624,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in NBIX. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its position in Neurocrine Biosciences by 99.1% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 53.5% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 373 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences during the fourth quarter worth $61,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Neurocrine Biosciences by 211.6% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 455 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.59% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on NBIX. StockNews.com upgraded Neurocrine Biosciences from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $150.00 price target (down previously from $185.00) on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in a research note on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences from $162.00 to $176.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Neurocrine Biosciences in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $165.24.

Neurocrine Biosciences Stock Performance

Shares of Neurocrine Biosciences stock opened at $110.75 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.66, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $105.18 and a 1 year high of $157.98. The company’s fifty day moving average is $129.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $125.71.

Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:NBIX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by ($0.62). Neurocrine Biosciences had a return on equity of 13.38% and a net margin of 14.49%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. will post 4.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Neurocrine Biosciences declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Friday, February 21st that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Neurocrine Biosciences

In other Neurocrine Biosciences news, Director Kevin Charles Gorman sold 5,844 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.69, for a total transaction of $681,936.36. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 521,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $60,867,604.42. This represents a 1.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Matt Abernethy sold 1,283 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.87, for a total transaction of $196,132.21. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 32,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,995,944.47. This trade represents a 3.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 234,269 shares of company stock valued at $34,053,879. Corporate insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Neurocrine Biosciences Profile

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.