Ocular Therapeutix Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:OCUL)

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCUL) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors acquired 3,324 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 15% compared to the typical daily volume of 2,900 call options.

Ocular Therapeutix Price Performance

Shares of Ocular Therapeutix stock traded up $0.12 on Friday, reaching $11.40. 2,347,884 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,733,851. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 7.78 and a current ratio of 7.85. The firm has a market cap of $2.43 billion, a PE ratio of -7.92 and a beta of 0.93. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $12.32 and its 200-day moving average is $11.96. Ocular Therapeutix has a one year low of $5.78 and a one year high of $16.44.

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.37) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.39) by $0.02. The company had revenue of $14.54 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.57 million. Ocular Therapeutix had a negative return on equity of 86.33% and a negative net margin of 447.57%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ocular Therapeutix will post -0.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Ocular Therapeutix

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ocular Therapeutix during the fourth quarter worth $258,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in Ocular Therapeutix by 68.8% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 93,662 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,137,000 after purchasing an additional 38,166 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Ocular Therapeutix by 1,261.4% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 620,814 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $7,537,000 after purchasing an additional 575,214 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix during the fourth quarter valued at about $359,000. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald L. P. bought a new position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,360,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.21% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JMP Securities boosted their price target on Ocular Therapeutix from $20.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Ocular Therapeutix from $17.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.56.

About Ocular Therapeutix

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of innovative therapies for diseases and conditions of the eye. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts, the company focuses on sustained-release drug delivery platforms designed to address key unmet needs in ophthalmology. Its proprietary hydrogel-based inserts and sealants aim to improve patient compliance and outcomes by providing controlled release of active pharmaceutical ingredients directly to ocular tissues.

The company’s flagship product, DEXTENZA®, is a preservative-free, sustained-release dexamethasone intracanalicular insert approved by the U.S.