Short Interest in Exagen Inc. (NASDAQ:XGN) Rises By 65.7%

Exagen Inc. (NASDAQ:XGN) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,793,289 shares, an increase of 65.7% from the December 31st total of 1,082,304 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 675,768 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.7 days. Approximately 9.1% of the company’s stock are sold short. Approximately 9.1% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 675,768 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Institutional Trading of Exagen

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Exagen by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 733,824 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,065,000 after acquiring an additional 52,205 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Exagen in the second quarter valued at approximately $5,017,000. Invesco Ltd. acquired a new position in Exagen during the third quarter worth approximately $7,420,000. Kennedy Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Exagen by 77.6% during the third quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 551,848 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,065,000 after purchasing an additional 241,127 shares during the period. Finally, Wexford Capital LP boosted its holdings in shares of Exagen by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wexford Capital LP now owns 444,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,890,000 after purchasing an additional 28,579 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of Exagen from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on Exagen from $11.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Exagen in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. B. Riley reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $8.00 target price (down from $18.00) on shares of Exagen in a research report on Friday. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on Exagen from $12.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $12.50.

Exagen Stock Down 6.8%

XGN opened at $3.68 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 4.08 and a quick ratio of 4.08. Exagen has a 12 month low of $2.67 and a 12 month high of $12.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.39 million, a P/E ratio of -4.00 and a beta of 1.86. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $6.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.49.

Exagen (NASDAQ:XGN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.19) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13) by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $17.24 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.90 million. Exagen had a negative net margin of 29.94% and a negative return on equity of 113.48%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Exagen will post -0.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Exagen

Exagen Inc is a molecular diagnostics company focused on improving the detection and management of autoimmune diseases. Headquartered in the United States, the company develops, manufactures and markets laboratory tests designed to help clinicians address diagnostic challenges associated with complex connective tissue disorders.

The company’s flagship product portfolio, marketed under the Avise® brand, includes multi-analyte assays such as the Avise® Connective Tissue Disease (CTD) panel, Avise® Lupus panel and Avise® Sjögren’s panel.