Citigroup Increases Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LXRX) Price Target to $2.30

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LXRX) had its price target hoisted by research analysts at Citigroup from $2.10 to $2.30 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Citigroup’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 37.31% from the stock’s previous close.

LXRX has been the subject of a number of other reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals from $4.00 to $6.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lexicon Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $4.15.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of LXRX stock traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $1.68. The stock had a trading volume of 696,355 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,978,082. The firm has a market cap of $709.66 million, a PE ratio of -11.96 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a quick ratio of 4.87, a current ratio of 4.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Lexicon Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $0.32 and a one year high of $1.83. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $1.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1.34.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LXRX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.07) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $5.49 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.14 million. Lexicon Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 101.08% and a negative return on equity of 41.94%. On average, analysts forecast that Lexicon Pharmaceuticals will post -0.66 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Raymond Debbane bought 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $1.47 per share, with a total value of $147,000.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 1,904,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,799,153.42. This represents a 5.54% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Invus Global Management, Llc purchased 1,538,462 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $1.30 per share, for a total transaction of $2,000,000.60. Following the acquisition, the director owned 1,538,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,000,000.60. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders acquired a total of 1,790,462 shares of company stock worth $2,369,981 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 13.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lexicon Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LXRX. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA acquired a new position in Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new position in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Lexicon Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. 74.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Lexicon Pharmaceuticals

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of novel medicines through its proprietary genome biology platform. By leveraging large-scale gene knockout libraries, the company identifies potential therapeutic targets and advances them through preclinical and clinical development. Lexicon’s approach emphasizes the translation of genetic insights into targeted therapies for a range of human diseases.

The company’s most advanced product is telotristat ethyl (sold under the brand name XERMELO), an oral treatment approved for the management of carcinoid syndrome diarrhea in patients inadequately controlled by somatostatin analog therapy.