ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:ACAD) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:ACAD - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 9,360,000 shares, a drop of 5.5% from the November 30th total of 9,910,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,530,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.1 days.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 9.9 %

ACAD stock traded up $1.66 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $18.35. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,192,744 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,707,898. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $14.15 and a 52-week high of $31.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.53 and a beta of 0.40. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.34.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ACAD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $250.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $248.83 million. ACADIA Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 25.83% and a net margin of 13.83%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.40) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that ACADIA Pharmaceuticals will post 0.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Mark C. Schneyer sold 10,259 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $896,006.62. The trade was a 16.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Brendan Teehan sold 10,329 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total transaction of $173,630.49. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 62,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,043,985.05. This trade represents a 14.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 24,661 shares of company stock worth $414,551 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 28.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 126.2% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 277,565 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,269,000 after purchasing an additional 154,854 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth approximately $483,000. Fred Alger Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 19.8% in the 2nd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 2,704,439 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $43,947,000 after purchasing an additional 446,875 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its position in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 2,084.0% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 32,934 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $507,000 after acquiring an additional 31,426 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in ACADIA Pharmaceuticals by 259.0% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 223,618 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,439,000 after buying an additional 161,331 shares during the period. 96.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ACAD shares. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $27.00 price target on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Raymond James reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered ACADIA Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $25.60.

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.