Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESPR) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESPR - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $7.25.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ESPR shares. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $4.00 price objective for the company. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and set a $7.00 price target on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $6.00 price objective on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a report on Friday, December 13th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $16.00 target price on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $8.00 price target for the company.

Esperion Therapeutics Trading Up 0.5 %

Esperion Therapeutics stock traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $1.86. The company had a trading volume of 1,780,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,878,727. Esperion Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $1.58 and a 12-month high of $3.94. The company's fifty day moving average is $2.33 and its 200-day moving average is $2.13.

Esperion Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ESPR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.15) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $51.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.44 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.37) EPS. Analysts anticipate that Esperion Therapeutics will post -0.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESPR. Traphagen Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Esperion Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. acquired a new stake in Esperion Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. Versor Investments LP acquired a new stake in Esperion Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $44,000. SLT Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Esperion Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $66,000. Finally, Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 48.6% during the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 30,172 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 9,872 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.39% of the company's stock.

About Esperion Therapeutics

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc, a pharmaceutical company, develops and commercializes medicines for the treatment of patients with elevated low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). Its marketed products include NEXLETOL (bempedoic acid) and NEXLIZET (bempedoic acid and ezetimibe) tablets that are oral, once-daily, non-statin medicines for the treatment of primary hyperlipidemia in adults with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia or atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease who require additional lowering of LDL-C.