Lazard Asset Management LLC Buys 65,420 Shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCRX)

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCRX) by 68.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 161,516 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 65,420 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,214,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BCRX. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,890,422 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $164,616,000 after acquiring an additional 1,583,826 shares in the last quarter. Eversept Partners LP increased its position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 269.9% in the 4th quarter. Eversept Partners LP now owns 1,980,312 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $14,892,000 after buying an additional 1,444,907 shares during the period. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. increased its position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 65,213.3% in the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 542,100 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,077,000 after buying an additional 541,270 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,983,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,947,000. 85.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.3%

BCRX opened at $10.37 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $2.17 billion, a PE ratio of -17.00 and a beta of 1.08. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $5.92 and a 1 year high of $11.11. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $8.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $7.97.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.07) by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $131.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $126.64 million. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 40.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.28 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -0.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on BCRX shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $13.00 price target (up from $11.00) on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wedbush started coverage on BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $15.00 price target on the stock. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $30.00 price target on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $18.00 price target on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $16.56.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Profile

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biotechnology company, develops oral small-molecule and protein therapeutics to treat rare diseases. The company markets peramivir injection, an intravenous neuraminidase inhibitor for the treatment of acute uncomplicated influenza under the RAPIVAB, RAPIACTA, and PERAMIFLU names; and ORLADEYO, an oral serine protease inhibitor to treat hereditary angioedema.