Benitec Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ:BNTC) Short Interest Update

Benitec Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ:BNTC) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 294,200 shares, an increase of 36.1% from the March 15th total of 216,100 shares. Currently, 1.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 42,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 7.0 days.

Benitec Biopharma Stock Performance

BNTC traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $13.75. 33,112 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 41,853. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $12.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.55. Benitec Biopharma has a one year low of $5.74 and a one year high of $16.90. The company has a market cap of $322.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.11 and a beta of 0.76.

Benitec Biopharma (NASDAQ:BNTC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.36) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.55) by $0.19. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Benitec Biopharma will post -1.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on BNTC. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $28.00 target price on shares of Benitec Biopharma in a research note on Monday, March 24th. JMP Securities boosted their price target on Benitec Biopharma from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $24.71.

Insider Activity

In other Benitec Biopharma news, Director Suvretta Capital Management, L bought 900,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.00 per share, for a total transaction of $11,700,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 8,793,245 shares in the company, valued at $114,312,185. This represents a 11.40 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Benitec Biopharma

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BNTC. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Benitec Biopharma by 31.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 83,987 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $772,000 after acquiring an additional 20,012 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Benitec Biopharma by 269.0% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,939,287 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $37,123,000 after purchasing an additional 2,142,643 shares during the last quarter. MYDA Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Benitec Biopharma in the 4th quarter worth approximately $632,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. boosted its holdings in Benitec Biopharma by 134.4% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,972,524 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $24,913,000 after acquiring an additional 1,131,129 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Benitec Biopharma by 54.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 38,200 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $482,000 after purchasing an additional 13,425 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 52.19% of the company’s stock.

Benitec Biopharma Company Profile

Benitec Biopharma Inc, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, focuses on the development of novel genetic medicines. The company develops DNA-directed RNA interference-based therapeutics for chronic and life-threatening human conditions. It is developing BB-301, an adeno-associated virus based gene therapy agent for treating oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy.