Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACRS) Short Interest Up 59.0% in November

Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACRS) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,480,000 shares, an increase of 59.0% from the November 15th total of 1,560,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,210,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.1 days.

Insider Activity

In other Aclaris Therapeutics news, Director Anand Mehra acquired 666,666 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $2.25 per share, for a total transaction of $1,499,998.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 710,030 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,597,567.50. This trade represents a 1,537.37 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Aclaris Therapeutics by 4.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,929,775 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $6,113,000 after acquiring an additional 207,418 shares in the last quarter. Trium Capital LLP purchased a new stake in Aclaris Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $2,081,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Aclaris Therapeutics in the second quarter worth about $119,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics by 1.9% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,336,850 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $3,671,000 after acquiring an additional 63,358 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stonepine Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aclaris Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,120,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ACRS shares. BTIG Research raised shares of Aclaris Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $8.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Aclaris Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $2.00 to $7.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Aclaris Therapeutics from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Aclaris Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised Aclaris Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $8.80.

Aclaris Therapeutics Stock Down 1.5 %

ACRS opened at $3.22 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $2.50 and a 200 day moving average of $1.65. The stock has a market cap of $230.00 million, a P/E ratio of -6.29 and a beta of 0.45. Aclaris Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $0.80 and a 52-week high of $5.17.

Aclaris Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACRS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $4.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.31 million. Aclaris Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 136.65% and a negative return on equity of 40.26%. Equities analysts anticipate that Aclaris Therapeutics will post -0.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Aclaris Therapeutics

Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development of novel drug candidates for immune-inflammatory diseases in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Therapeutics and Contract Research. The Therapeutics segment is involved in identifying and developing therapies to address significant unmet needs for immuno-inflammatory diseases.