Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CRNX) Shares Down 4.3% – What’s Next?

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRNX) was down 4.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $33.82 and last traded at $34.05. Approximately 256,558 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 1,244,810 shares. The stock had previously closed at $35.57.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRNX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Citizens Jmp reduced their target price on Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Crinetics Pharmaceuticals from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Lifesci Capital upgraded Crinetics Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $76.63.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.0%

The company has a market cap of $3.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.96 and a beta of 0.23. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $44.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.04.

Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CRNX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($1.29) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.37) by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.16 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.32 million. Crinetics Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 41.46% and a negative net margin of 6,046.22%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up NaN% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.88) earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -3.73 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Crinetics Pharmaceuticals

In related news, insider Stephen F. Betz sold 10,612 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.37, for a total transaction of $396,570.44. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 137,101 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,123,464.37. This trade represents a 7.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Richard Scott Struthers sold 21,981 shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.37, for a total transaction of $821,429.97. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 404,778 shares in the company, valued at $15,126,553.86. This trade represents a 5.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 59,717 shares of company stock valued at $2,291,939 in the last three months. 6.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Walleye Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals by 53.5% during the 2nd quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 190,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,475,000 after purchasing an additional 66,391 shares during the last quarter. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at about $953,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at about $514,000. AXQ Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Finally, Rice Hall James & Associates LLC acquired a new position in shares of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $7,250,000. 98.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Crinetics Pharmaceuticals

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.