23andMe Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ME) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

23andMe Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ME) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,700,000 shares, an increase of 22.3% from the February 13th total of 1,390,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 299,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.7 days. Approximately 10.7% of the shares of the company are sold short.

23andMe Stock Performance

23andMe stock traded down $0.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $1.86. 40,302 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 301,476. The company has a market capitalization of $49.76 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.12 and a beta of 1.19. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $2.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $4.02. 23andMe has a 1 year low of $1.34 and a 1 year high of $12.76.

23andMe (NASDAQ:ME) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported ($1.02) EPS for the quarter. 23andMe had a negative net margin of 183.39% and a negative return on equity of 170.07%.

Institutional Trading of 23andMe

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in 23andMe by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,246,093 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,476,000 after buying an additional 28,252 shares during the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of 23andMe during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of 23andMe in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB bought a new position in 23andMe during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Shay Capital LLC increased its position in 23andMe by 71.7% in the fourth quarter. Shay Capital LLC now owns 702,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,283,000 after buying an additional 293,358 shares during the period. 36.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of 23andMe in a report on Friday, March 7th.

About 23andMe

23andMe Holding Co operates as a consumer genetics testing company. The company operates in two segments, Consumer & Research Services and Therapeutics. The Consumer & Research Services segment provides a suite of genetic reports, including information on customers' genetic ancestral origins, personal genetic health risks, and chances of passing on certain rare carrier conditions to their children, as well as reports on how genetics can impact responses to medications.