Tarsus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:TARS) Hits New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:TARS)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Friday after Jefferies Financial Group upgraded the stock to a strong-buy rating. The stock traded as high as $85.75 and last traded at $85.6450, with a volume of 298739 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.21.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 price target on shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.50.

Insider Activity at Tarsus Pharmaceuticals

In other news, insider Elizabeth Lin sold 5,387 shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $430,960.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 13,320 shares in the company, valued at $1,065,600. This trade represents a 28.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Jeffrey S. Farrow sold 14,396 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.95, for a total transaction of $877,436.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 56,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,462,020.95. This trade represents a 20.22% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 51,428 shares of company stock worth $3,350,810. 9.64% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Tarsus Pharmaceuticals

Here are the key news stories impacting Tarsus Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Tarsus completed its acquisition of Alkeus, obtaining worldwide rights to gildeuretinol (ALK-001), an investigational once-daily oral treatment for Stargardt disease. The rare inherited eye disease has no FDA-approved therapy and may affect up to 86,000 people in the United States. Tarsus completes Alkeus acquisition
• Positive Sentiment: ALK-001 is being evaluated in the global NORTHSTAR Phase 3 trial and has received FDA Breakthrough Therapy, Orphan Drug, Fast Track and Rare Pediatric Disease designations. The regulatory designations and potential to address a significant unmet need strengthen Tarsus’ pipeline, although topline trial data are not expected until 2029. Alkeus acquisition adds Phase 3 program
• Positive Sentiment: Newly published TEASE-1 results showed that daily gildeuretinol significantly reduced the growth rate of retinal atrophic lesions versus an untreated group and was well tolerated, with no reported delays in dark adaptation or night blindness. TEASE-1 study results
• Neutral Sentiment: The acquisition expands Tarsus beyond its commercial XDEMVY business and supports management’s strategy of building a broader eye-care company. However, the transaction’s financial terms and the ultimate commercial value of ALK-001 were not detailed in the reports.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider Elizabeth Lin reported multiple sales totaling approximately $898,000 across September 1–2 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. While such planned transactions may not reflect current management views, the sales add a modest cautionary signal for investors.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Tarsus Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 5.8% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 22,143 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,137,000 after acquiring an additional 1,217 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 71,220 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,659,000 after purchasing an additional 1,394 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its stake in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 105.8% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 10,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $537,000 after purchasing an additional 190,000 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 402.7% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 140,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,696,000 after purchasing an additional 112,637 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Tarsus Pharmaceuticals by 12.3% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 928,501 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,614,000 after purchasing an additional 101,978 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.01% of the company’s stock.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 9.1%

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $66.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.93. The stock has a market cap of $3.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -83.28 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 3.20 and a quick ratio of 3.17.

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:TARS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.43) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.19) by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $173.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $169.65 million. Tarsus Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 7.67% and a negative return on equity of 13.53%. Equities analysts forecast that Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -2.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Tarsus Pharmaceuticals

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel therapies for diseases of the eye and ocular surface. The company’s research platform centers on neuro‐effector modulation to address underlying disease mechanisms rather than solely treating symptoms. Tarsus’s lead candidate, OC-01 (varenicline solution), is an intranasal formulation in Phase 3 development for the treatment of dry eye disease, a condition affecting millions worldwide and associated with significant patient discomfort and reduced quality of life.

In addition to its dry eye program, Tarsus is advancing preclinical and early‐stage programs targeting other ophthalmic indications, including allergic conjunctivitis and retinal disorders.