Avadel Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AVDL) Shares Gap Up Following Insider Buying Activity

Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:AVDL - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock had previously closed at $8.05, but opened at $8.64. Avadel Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $8.49, with a volume of 204,004 shares changing hands.

Specifically, Director Peter J. Thornton bought 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $8.04 per share, with a total value of $80,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 104,055 shares in the company, valued at approximately $836,602.20. The trade was a 10.63 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVDL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals from $24.00 to $13.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals from $22.00 to $14.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $21.00 price objective (down from $25.00) on shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Avadel Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $21.00.

Avadel Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $786.31 million, a PE ratio of -10.33 and a beta of 1.31. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $10.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $13.40.

Avadel Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AVDL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.06) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $50.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $48.43 million. Avadel Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 52.53% and a negative return on equity of 93.34%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 624.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.41) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc will post -0.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Avadel Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AVDL. Braidwell LP lifted its stake in shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals by 16.9% during the 3rd quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 3,388,939 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,446,000 after buying an additional 490,300 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals by 42.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,623,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,290,000 after buying an additional 483,787 shares in the last quarter. Nantahala Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,921,000. Troluce Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,109,000. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals by 45.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 392,691 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,150,000 after buying an additional 123,430 shares in the last quarter. 69.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Avadel Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc operates as a biopharmaceutical company in the United States. Its lead product candidate is LUMRYZ, a formulation of sodium oxybate, which is in a Phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of excessive daytime sleepiness or cataplexy in adults with narcolepsy. The company was formerly known as Flamel Technologies SA and changed its name to Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc in January 2017.