Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Purchases 278,610 Shares of Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCUL)

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its holdings in Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCUL) by 26.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,334,702 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 278,610 shares during the quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership owned 0.85% of Ocular Therapeutix worth $11,398,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in OCUL. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Ocular Therapeutix by 146.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,110,460 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $9,661,000 after acquiring an additional 660,080 shares during the period. Braidwell LP raised its holdings in shares of Ocular Therapeutix by 36.3% in the 3rd quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 2,239,770 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $19,486,000 after buying an additional 596,000 shares in the last quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ocular Therapeutix during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,288,000. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Ocular Therapeutix by 7,098.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 434,369 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,779,000 after buying an additional 428,335 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFM Health Sciences LP bought a new stake in Ocular Therapeutix in the third quarter valued at $3,505,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.21% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ocular Therapeutix

In other Ocular Therapeutix news, insider Donald Notman sold 11,119 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.81, for a total transaction of $86,839.39. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 193,444 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,510,797.64. The trade was a 5.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Pravin Dugel sold 21,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.87, for a total value of $147,533.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,520,318 shares in the company, valued at $24,184,584.66. This represents a 0.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,895 shares of company stock worth $283,772 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

OCUL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. JMP Securities set a $19.00 price target on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on shares of Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $17.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Needham & Company LLC began coverage on Ocular Therapeutix in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ocular Therapeutix has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $16.38.

Ocular Therapeutix Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of OCUL opened at $7.58 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $7.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $8.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.74 and a beta of 1.34. Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. has a 52 week low of $4.06 and a 52 week high of $11.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 12.94 and a current ratio of 13.01.

Ocular Therapeutix (NASDAQ:OCUL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.29) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.24) by ($0.05). Ocular Therapeutix had a negative return on equity of 45.18% and a negative net margin of 283.74%. The firm had revenue of $17.08 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.89 million. On average, analysts predict that Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current year.

About Ocular Therapeutix

Ocular Therapeutix, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the formulation, development, and commercialization of therapies for diseases and conditions of the eye using its bioresorbable hydrogel-based formulation technology in the United States. The company markets DEXTENZA, a dexamethasone ophthalmic insert to treat post-surgical ocular inflammation and pain following ophthalmic surgery, as well as allergic conjunctivitis.