Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CRNX) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s Why

Shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRNX) saw strong trading volume on Thursday . 8,334,161 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 258% from the previous session’s volume of 2,328,045 shares.The stock last traded at $84.71 and had previously closed at $84.69.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. HC Wainwright lowered shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $81.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Citizens Jmp downgraded shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Evercore lowered shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $81.00.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $69.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $49.42. The stock has a market cap of $8.98 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.80 and a beta of 0.12.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CRNX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported ($1.14) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.18) by $0.04. Crinetics Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 44.22% and a negative net margin of 1,189.88%.The company had revenue of $25.12 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.84 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($1.23) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2336.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -4.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Crinetics Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Stephanie Okey sold 6,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.67, for a total transaction of $246,123.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $228,288. The trade was a 51.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Coelho Rogerio Vivaldi sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 19,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $769,000. The trade was a 13.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 11.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 59,311 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,995,000 after buying an additional 6,148 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 6.9% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 347,581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,658,000 after acquiring an additional 22,305 shares during the period. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $124,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 78,140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,247,000 after acquiring an additional 8,181 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 20.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 60,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,731,000 after acquiring an additional 10,269 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.51% of the company’s stock.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapeutics for rare endocrine diseases. The company’s proprietary platform leverages insights into hormone receptor signaling to design small-molecule candidates that address conditions driven by dysregulated hormone activity. Crinetics’ research efforts center on targeting somatostatin, vasopressin and other GPCR-mediated pathways with orally bioavailable molecules intended to improve patient convenience and adherence.

The company’s lead product candidate, paltusotine (formerly CRN04777), is a selective, non-peptide somatostatin receptor type 2 agonist being evaluated for the treatment of acromegaly and carcinoid syndrome diarrhea.