Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) Short Interest Update

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) saw a large increase in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 706,500 shares, an increase of 29.0% from the January 15th total of 547,800 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 214,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days. Approximately 18.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on ATRA shares. Rodman & Renshaw started coverage on Atara Biotherapeutics in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. RODMAN&RENSHAW lowered shares of Atara Biotherapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Atara Biotherapeutics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.75.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atara Biotherapeutics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ATRA. Vestal Point Capital LP lifted its stake in Atara Biotherapeutics by 11.3% in the third quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP now owns 124,677 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,014,000 after buying an additional 12,677 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics by 17.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 54,744 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $729,000 after acquiring an additional 8,024 shares during the period. Staley Capital Advisers Inc. boosted its stake in Atara Biotherapeutics by 25.0% during the fourth quarter. Staley Capital Advisers Inc. now owns 50,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $666,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Atara Biotherapeutics by 41.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,061 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 7,381 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in Atara Biotherapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $332,000. Institutional investors own 70.90% of the company’s stock.

Atara Biotherapeutics Price Performance

ATRA stock traded down $0.13 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $8.59. The stock had a trading volume of 57,576 shares, compared to its average volume of 435,211. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $11.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $9.80. Atara Biotherapeutics has a 1-year low of $5.40 and a 1-year high of $23.44.

Atara Biotherapeutics Company Profile

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc engages in the development of transformative therapies for patients with solid tumors, hematologic cancers, and autoimmune diseases in the United States and the United Kingdom. Its lead product includes Tab-cel (tabelecleucel), a T-cell immunotherapy program that is in Phase 3 clinical trials for the treatment of epstein-barr virus (EBV) driven post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease, as well as nasopharyngeal carcinoma.