ARS Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SPRY) Trading 5.5% Higher – Still a Buy?

ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPRY) was up 5.5% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $11.39 and last traded at $11.47. Approximately 487,982 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average daily volume of 1,304,041 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.87.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SPRY shares. Raymond James upped their target price on ARS Pharmaceuticals from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on ARS Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Oppenheimer started coverage on ARS Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, February 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Leerink Partners lifted their target price on ARS Pharmaceuticals from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.00.

ARS Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.6 %

The company has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -21.27 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $11.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.16.

Insider Transactions at ARS Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Laura Shawver sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.10, for a total value of $555,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 210,346 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,334,840.60. This trade represents a 19.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sarina Tanimoto sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.16, for a total value of $1,316,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,148,499 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,114,246.84. This trade represents a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 401,872 shares of company stock worth $4,845,916. 40.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of ARS Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in ARS Pharmaceuticals by 5,168.4% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,880,734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,942,000 after acquiring an additional 3,807,074 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. raised its stake in ARS Pharmaceuticals by 903.0% during the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,253,724 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,227,000 after acquiring an additional 1,128,724 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in ARS Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $6,576,000. First Turn Management LLC bought a new stake in ARS Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $8,603,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in ARS Pharmaceuticals by 93.0% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 939,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,909,000 after acquiring an additional 452,532 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.16% of the company’s stock.

About ARS Pharmaceuticals

ARS Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, develops treatments for severe allergic reactions. The company is developing neffy, a needle-free and low-dose intranasal epinephrine nasal spray for the emergency treatment of Type I allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. It serves healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers.