ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:ACAD) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:ACAD - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,720,000 shares, a growth of 14.5% from the December 31st total of 9,360,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,230,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.8 days.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ACAD traded up $0.22 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $18.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 948,096 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,501,663. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $17.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.01 and a beta of 0.37. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $14.15 and a fifty-two week high of $26.78.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.06. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 25.83% and a net margin of 13.83%. The firm had revenue of $250.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $248.83 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.40) EPS. The company's revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that ACADIA Pharmaceuticals will post 0.7 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

In related news, COO Brendan Teehan sold 10,329 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total transaction of $173,630.49. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 62,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,043,985.05. The trade was a 14.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Mark C. Schneyer sold 10,259 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total value of $172,453.79. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 53,302 shares of the company's stock, valued at $896,006.62. The trade was a 16.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 24,661 shares of company stock valued at $414,551. 28.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ACAD. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 380.3% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,483,731 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $45,576,000 after acquiring an additional 1,966,607 shares during the period. Iron Triangle Partners LP bought a new position in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $11,535,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP acquired a new stake in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $10,550,000. Eventide Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $8,882,000. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 3,186,389 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $49,007,000 after buying an additional 481,950 shares in the last quarter. 96.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ACAD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and set a $27.00 price objective on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Guggenheim downgraded ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $23.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $28.00 price target on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $25.25.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization innovative medicines that address unmet medical needs in central nervous system (CNS) disorders and rare diseases in the United States. The company offers NUPLAZID (pimavanserin) for the treatment of hallucinations and delusions associated with Parkinson's disease psychosis; and DAYBUE, a novel synthetic analog of the amino-terminal tripeptide of insulin-like growth factor 1 for treatment of Rett Syndrome.