Benjamin Halladay Sells 10,773 Shares of Esperion Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ESPR) Stock

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESPR) CFO Benjamin Halladay sold 10,773 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.15, for a total transaction of $33,934.95. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 702,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,213,911.35. This represents a 1.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Esperion Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ESPR opened at $3.15 on Friday. Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $0.95 and a 12 month high of $4.18. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $2.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3.12. The stock has a market cap of $811.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -52.50 and a beta of 1.07.

Esperion Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ESPR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $80.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.52 million. Esperion Therapeutics had a net margin of 0.12% and a negative return on equity of 0.14%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 66.9% in the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 15,768,897 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $43,207,000 after acquiring an additional 6,323,138 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 23.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,945,454 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $55,298,000 after acquiring an additional 2,853,005 shares in the last quarter. Two Seas Capital LP grew its position in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 22.1% during the 4th quarter. Two Seas Capital LP now owns 11,902,521 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $44,039,000 after acquiring an additional 2,152,797 shares during the period. Orbimed Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 77.2% during the 1st quarter. Orbimed Advisors LLC now owns 10,570,300 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $28,963,000 after acquiring an additional 4,604,802 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 32.4% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,930,296 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $21,942,000 after purchasing an additional 1,451,462 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.39% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESPR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Needham & Company LLC downgraded Esperion Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Esperion Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. HC Wainwright cut Esperion Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $3.16 price target for the company. in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded Esperion Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $5.54.

Esperion Therapeutics Company Profile

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of oral, low–density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C)–lowering therapies. The company’s research and development efforts center on small-molecule compounds designed to address atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease by targeting cholesterol biosynthesis pathways. Esperion seeks to provide novel treatment options for patients who require additional LDL-C reduction beyond what is achieved with statins or who are statin-intolerant.

The company’s lead products include NEXLETOL (bempedoic acid), an oral adenosine triphosphate–citrate lyase (ACL) inhibitor approved by the U.S.