Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Acquires Shares of 521,081 Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. $ESPR

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESPR) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 521,081 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,428,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio owned about 0.20% of Esperion Therapeutics as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ESPR. R Squared Ltd raised its stake in Esperion Therapeutics by 23.5% in the 4th quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 15,173 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 2,890 shares during the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Esperion Therapeutics by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 38,955 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $144,000 after purchasing an additional 3,614 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 49.0% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 11,617 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 3,822 shares in the last quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC grew its holdings in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC now owns 46,595 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $172,000 after buying an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Esperion Therapeutics by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 28,338 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 4,422 shares during the last quarter. 47.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Benjamin Halladay sold 10,773 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.15, for a total value of $33,934.95. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 702,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,213,911.35. The trade was a 1.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Benjamin Looker sold 11,824 shares of the company’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 $37,245.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 667,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,102,700.60. This represents a 1.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ESPR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Esperion Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Piper Sandler cut Esperion Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC downgraded Esperion Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Citizens Jmp cut Esperion Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Esperion Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Esperion Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.54.

Esperion Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ESPR opened at $3.18 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $3.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.97. The company has a market capitalization of $819.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -53.00 and a beta of 1.07. Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $1.10 and a 12-month high of $4.18.

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

Esperion Therapeutics 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.