Incyte (NASDAQ:INCY) Trading Up 6.6% on Analyst Upgrade

Incyte Corporation (NASDAQ:INCY) shares were up 6.6% during trading on Wednesday after HC Wainwright raised their price target on the stock from $135.00 to $140.00. HC Wainwright currently has a buy rating on the stock. Incyte traded as high as $108.58 and last traded at $110.0580. Approximately 494,037 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 1,699,693 shares. The stock had previously closed at $103.23.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on INCY. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Incyte in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. They set a “market perform” rating and a $99.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Incyte from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Incyte in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley set a $102.00 price objective on shares of Incyte in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Citigroup restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Incyte in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $105.10.

Insider Transactions at Incyte

In other news, insider Pablo J. Cagnoni sold 18,667 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.50, for a total value of $1,801,365.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 262,692 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,349,778. This represents a 6.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 16.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Incyte News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Incyte this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Incyte announced it will acquire Vega Therapeutics for up to $2 billion, adding a late-stage von Willebrand disease candidate and expanding its hematology pipeline ahead of future revenue pressure from Jakafi’s patent expiry. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: H.C. Wainwright raised its price target on Incyte to $140 from $135 and reiterated a Buy rating, citing potential synergies from the Vega acquisition. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Another report also highlighted the Vega deal as a growth move, noting the upfront $1.25 billion payment and the drug’s blockbuster potential in rare bleeding disorders. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Shareholders approved the company’s board, executive pay, and auditor choices at the annual meeting, removing a governance overhang but creating no major new catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Incyte also presented at the Goldman Sachs Global Healthcare Conference, which may have reinforced management’s strategic outlook but did not include a headline-changing announcement. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors may view the acquisition as expensive, since Incyte is paying a large amount for a pipeline asset that still carries development and execution risk. Article Title

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in INCY. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Incyte by 369.3% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 12,597 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $763,000 after purchasing an additional 9,913 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Incyte by 15.1% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,944 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $299,000 after buying an additional 648 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Incyte by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 814,559 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $49,322,000 after buying an additional 48,751 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in Incyte during the 1st quarter worth approximately $219,000. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in Incyte by 74.1% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 21,024 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,273,000 after acquiring an additional 8,951 shares in the last quarter. 96.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Incyte Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $21.90 billion, a PE ratio of 15.56, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.79. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $99.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 3.60 and a current ratio of 3.68.

Incyte (NASDAQ:INCY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.43. Incyte had a net margin of 26.71% and a return on equity of 26.66%. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 20.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Incyte Corporation will post 6.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Incyte Company Profile

Incyte Corporation is a Wilmington, Delaware–based biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapies in oncology and inflammation. Since its founding in 2002, Incyte has grown from a small research organization into a global enterprise, advancing a portfolio of internally developed and partnered assets. The company’s research and development efforts center on small-molecule drugs and biologics that modulate critical signaling pathways implicated in cancer, autoimmune disorders and rare diseases.

The company’s flagship product is Jakafi® (ruxolitinib), a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor approved for the treatment of myelofibrosis and polycythemia vera.