DURECT (NASDAQ:DRRX) was upgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Zacks.com reports.
According to Zacks, “Durect Corp. is pioneering the treatment of chronic diseases and conditions by developing and commercializing pharmaceutical systems to deliver the right drug to the right place in the right amount at the right time. Its pharmaceutical systems combine engineering innovations and delivery technology from the medical device and drug delivery industries with its proprietary pharmaceutical and biotechnology drug formulations. “
Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. BidaskClub cut DURECT from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of DURECT in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Chardan Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $7.00 target price on shares of DURECT in a research note on Thursday, November 26th. TheStreet cut DURECT from a “c-” rating to a “d” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Finally, ValuEngine upgraded DURECT from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. DURECT currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $5.67.
Shares of DRRX traded down $0.07 on Friday, hitting $2.07. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 379,918 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,269,717. The company has a quick ratio of 5.57, a current ratio of 5.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $1.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $1.99. DURECT has a fifty-two week low of $0.95 and a fifty-two week high of $3.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $420.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -41.39 and a beta of 1.76.
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DURECT (NASDAQ:DRRX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, November 7th. The specialty pharmaceutical company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of ($0.04) by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.68 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.51 million. DURECT had a negative net margin of 21.85% and a negative return on equity of 33.98%. As a group, equities analysts predict that DURECT will post -0.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in DURECT in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new stake in DURECT in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can bought a new stake in DURECT in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Bank of Montreal Can bought a new stake in DURECT in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. bought a new stake in DURECT in the 3rd quarter valued at $58,000. Institutional investors own 54.90% of the company’s stock.
About DURECT
DURECT Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, researches and develops medicines based on its epigenetic regulator and pharmaceutical programs. The company offers ALZET product line that consists of osmotic pumps and accessories used for experimental research in mice, rats, and other laboratory animals; and a range of biodegradable polymers for pharmaceutical and medical device clients for use as raw materials in their products under the LACTEL brand.
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12 Stocks Corporate Insiders are Abandoning
An insider trade occurs when a corporate executive (such as a CEO, CFO, or COO) has non-public information about a company buys or sells shares of that company’s stock. Company insiders are required by law to regularly report their stock purchases and sales to the SEC.
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For example, if Microsoft’s CEO, CFO, and COO all recently sold shares of Microsoft stock, that would be an indication that there could be unreported news that may negatively affect Microsoft’s stock price in the near future.
This slideshow lists the 12 companies that have had the highest levels of insider buying within the last 180 days.
