Short Interest in Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) Grows By 500.8%

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,016,616 shares, a growth of 500.8% from the December 31st total of 169,201 shares. Currently, 14.7% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,101,087 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.9 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,101,087 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.9 days. Currently, 14.7% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. New Street Research set a $6.00 price target on Atara Biotherapeutics in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $6.00 price target (down from $25.00) on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atara Biotherapeutics has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $6.00.

Insider Activity at Atara Biotherapeutics

In other Atara Biotherapeutics news, major shareholder Innovation Ltd Panacea sold 80,554 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.07, for a total transaction of $488,962.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,324,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,039,387.22. This trade represents a 5.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Anhco Nguyen sold 2,915 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.19, for a total transaction of $38,448.85. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 64,974 shares in the company, valued at $857,007.06. This trade represents a 4.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 87,077 shares of company stock worth $575,001. Corporate insiders own 4.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATRA. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics by 183.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 63,816 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $914,000 after buying an additional 41,302 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics by 33.8% during the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 26,213 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $376,000 after purchasing an additional 6,622 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 203,438 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,915,000 after purchasing an additional 12,677 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Atara Biotherapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Atara Biotherapeutics in the second quarter worth $327,000. 70.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atara Biotherapeutics Stock Up 5.1%

ATRA stock opened at $5.56 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $13.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.95. Atara Biotherapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $4.20 and a fifty-two week high of $19.15. The stock has a market cap of $40.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.55 and a beta of -0.41.

Atara Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ATRA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 12th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.32) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.83) by $0.51. The firm had revenue of $3.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.74 million. Atara Biotherapeutics had a net margin of 15.40% and a negative return on equity of 41.78%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Atara Biotherapeutics will post -10.39 EPS for the current year.

Atara Biotherapeutics Company Profile

Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel T-cell immunotherapies to transform the treatment of cancer and autoimmune disease. Headquartered in South San Francisco, California, Atara leverages its proprietary off-the-shelf allogeneic Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-directed T-cell platform to generate engineered cell therapies designed to target EBV-driven malignancies and immune-mediated disorders.

The company’s lead product candidate, tabelecleucel, is an off-the-shelf, EBV-specific T-cell therapy in clinical development for the treatment of EBV-positive post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease (PTLD) and other EBV-associated cancers.