Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESPR) Receives $5.54 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESPR) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eight brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $5.54.

ESPR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citizens Jmp cut shares of Esperion Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Esperion Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC cut shares of Esperion Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Esperion Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, April 21st.

Esperion Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of ESPR stock opened at $3.15 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $2.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3.09. Esperion Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $0.95 and a 1 year high of $4.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $811.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -52.50 and a beta of 1.07.

Esperion Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ESPR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.10) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $80.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $84.52 million. Esperion Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 0.14% and a net margin of 0.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Esperion Therapeutics

In other news, CFO Benjamin Halladay sold 10,773 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.15, for a total value of $33,934.95. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 702,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,213,911.35. This represents a 1.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Benjamin Looker sold 11,824 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.15, for a total value of $37,245.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 667,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,102,700.60. This represents a 1.74% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its stake in Esperion Therapeutics by 66.9% in the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 15,768,897 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $43,207,000 after acquiring an additional 6,323,138 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Esperion Therapeutics by 23.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,945,454 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $55,298,000 after acquiring an additional 2,853,005 shares during the last quarter. Two Seas Capital LP increased its stake in Esperion Therapeutics by 22.1% in the fourth quarter. Two Seas Capital LP now owns 11,902,521 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $44,039,000 after acquiring an additional 2,152,797 shares during the last quarter. Orbimed Advisors LLC increased its stake in Esperion Therapeutics by 77.2% in the first quarter. Orbimed Advisors LLC now owns 10,570,300 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $28,963,000 after acquiring an additional 4,604,802 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its stake in Esperion Therapeutics by 32.4% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,930,296 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $21,942,000 after acquiring an additional 1,451,462 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.39% of the company’s stock.

Esperion Therapeutics Company Profile

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of oral, low–density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C)–lowering therapies. The company’s research and development efforts center on small-molecule compounds designed to address atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease by targeting cholesterol biosynthesis pathways. Esperion seeks to provide novel treatment options for patients who require additional LDL-C reduction beyond what is achieved with statins or who are statin-intolerant.

The company’s lead products include NEXLETOL (bempedoic acid), an oral adenosine triphosphate–citrate lyase (ACL) inhibitor approved by the U.S.