Franklin Resources Inc. Raises Holdings in ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANIP)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANIP) by 6.1% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 12,057 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 691 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in ANI Pharmaceuticals were worth $705,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ANIP. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of ANI Pharmaceuticals by 24.2% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 2,971 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $177,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in ANI Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth about $207,000. Profund Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of ANI Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ANI Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at $228,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of ANI Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $222,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.05% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at ANI Pharmaceuticals

In other news, CFO Stephen P. Carey sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.79, for a total transaction of $418,425.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 154,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,617,769.72. This trade represents a 4.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nikhil Lalwani sold 33,481 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.99, for a total value of $1,941,563.19. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 370,378 shares in the company, valued at $21,478,220.22. This trade represents a 8.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 42,231 shares of company stock valued at $2,434,286 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 12.70% of the company’s stock.

ANI Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of ANIP opened at $54.41 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $57.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.56. The company has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -98.93 and a beta of 0.73. ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a one year low of $52.50 and a one year high of $70.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 2.74 and a quick ratio of 1.97.

ANI Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ANIP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The specialty pharmaceutical company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.25. ANI Pharmaceuticals had a positive return on equity of 15.87% and a negative net margin of 1.28%. The company had revenue of $148.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $144.37 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.05 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post 3.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ANIP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of ANI Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com lowered shares of ANI Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 7th. Raymond James lifted their target price on ANI Pharmaceuticals from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $94.00 price objective on shares of ANI Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of ANI Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $80.00 target price for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.71.

ANI Pharmaceuticals Profile

ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, and markets branded and generic prescription pharmaceuticals in the United States and Canada. The company manufactures oral solid dose products; semi-solids, liquids, and topicals; controlled substances; and potent products, as well as performs contract development and manufacturing of pharmaceutical products.