BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCRX) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCRX) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 18,490,000 shares, a drop of 11.2% from the October 31st total of 20,830,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,980,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 9.3 days.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $7.50 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $7.30. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $4.03 and a 12 month high of $8.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.29 and a beta of 1.89.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.07) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $117.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $113.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.19) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that BioCryst Pharmaceuticals will post -0.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C boosted its holdings in shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 62.9% in the second quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C now owns 8,135,804 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $50,279,000 after acquiring an additional 3,140,804 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,837,985 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $36,776,000 after purchasing an additional 127,708 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,338,062 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,369,000 after purchasing an additional 481,359 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,181,012 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $16,576,000 after purchasing an additional 261,500 shares during the period. Finally, Rice Hall James & Associates LLC grew its position in BioCryst Pharmaceuticals by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 2,163,743 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $16,444,000 after purchasing an additional 84,102 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on BCRX shares. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $30.00 price objective on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $10.00 price target on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. JMP Securities increased their price target on BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $14.00 price objective on shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on BioCryst Pharmaceuticals from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BioCryst Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $15.60.

About BioCryst Pharmaceuticals

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biotechnology company, develops oral small-molecule and protein therapeutics to treat rare diseases. The company markets peramivir injection, an intravenous neuraminidase inhibitor for the treatment of acute uncomplicated influenza under the RAPIVAB, RAPIACTA, and PERAMIFLU names; and ORLADEYO, an oral serine protease inhibitor to treat hereditary angioedema.